Welcome to Slavestown
by SClownzZzZz
Summary: After Loki takes over Strangetown and enslaves its citizens, Isabella, Kea, Tank, and the Curious brothers must return to restore the town to its former glory. Feeling guilty, Vidcund vows to go after Loki himself, knowing it may have dire consequences. Meanwhile, Isabella struggles to find herself, Tank rounds up troops, and Pascal & Lazlo join a cult. R&R. - Now Complete!
1. Chapter 1: Total Takeover

Hey guys! This is story three of my Strangetown Saga series and the sequel to Sim State University Versus Ripp Grunt. The story mostly centers around Vidcund Curious, (the Curious brothers and Isabella are actually the only characters that appear in every chapter), but features more of a variety of characters than the previous two stories. As always, enjoy! And feel free to leave me a review telling me what you think, I'd really appreciate it! :-)

I couldn't fit the complete summary in preview, so here's the more thorough version: _After Loki takes over Strangetown and enslaves its residents, Isabella, Kea, Tank, and the Curious brothers must return and fight to restore the town to its former glory. Feeling guilty, Vidcund vows to go after Loki himself, hoping to end the Beaker-Curious rivalry for good - all while knowing that it will likely end in a battle to the death. While Isabella and Kea attempt to rescue Ripp, Isabella finds herself conflicted in more ways than one as she struggles to find her place on the team and her calling in life. Meanwhile, Tank rounds up troops in the city, and Pascal and Lazlo accidentally join a cult which was formed solely to destroy them._

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own the Sims.

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 **Welcome to Slavestown** by SClownzZzZz

 _Chapter One_

 _Strangetown – Eight Years Ago_

A council meeting is being held at city hall, located in the heart of the desert city; the council consisting of the eldest members of the city of Strangetown. The members are situated around a rustic oak table, conversing with one another about the current state of affairs. "Alright," Pascal Curious, the head of the council, states, standing up in his seat and placing his hands on the table, hoping to get everyone's attention. "Now that we're all here, the meeting can begin," he announces. All of the council members cease their chatter and look at him. "Today's first and only order of business: Olive Specter, the city's current mayor and eldest resident, is gravely ill, and we need to nominate a successor to serve the last two years of her term," he informs them, "Olive has turned the decision over to the council, so whoever we pick will become the new mayor of Strangetown, effective immediately. So, are there any nominations?"

No one says anything.

"Okay," Pascal says to the crowd, "Then I nominate Vidcund for the position. Does anyone second my nomination?" he asks.

"I do!" Crystal responds, sitting up in her seat. Loki glares at her.

"Great," Pascal replies, "Anyone else want to nominate someone?"

Loki stands up, throwing his hands on the table, "Yes. I hereby nominate myself for mayor of the city!" he announces.

Pascal nods, seemingly unfazed by this announcement. "Well alright then, does anyone second Loki?"

No one says a word.

Loki quickly turns to Circe, nudging her in the side. "Come on Circe, second my nomination."

"Oh sorry dear, I was texting my boss about the big project," Circe speaks up, still pressing buttons on her phone. She raises her hand up. "I second Loki's nomination," she states, not bothering her take eyes off of her phone.

"Alright then, if there are no further nominations for the mayoral chair, we will vote," Pascal concludes, scanning the table for any more nominations; the council is silent. "Okay, then we'll vote. Do each of you accept your nominations?" he asks the nominees, who are conveniently sitting across from each other.

Vidcund nods, "Yes."

"Duh," Loki responds.

"Good, so raise your hand if you want Mr. Loki Beaker to be the mayor," Pascal states to the six sims sitting at the table. Loki and Circe raise their hands. "Okay," Pascal speaks up, "And how many people want Vidcund to be the mayor?" he asks.

Vidcund, Crystal, himself, and Charles Lawson – the town's Mr. Big – all raise their hands. "Alright, the council has spoken. Vidcund is the new mayor!" Pascal proclaims.

"What?! That is unfair! Vidcund totally cheated!" Loki interrupts, crossing his arms across his chest in protest.

"How could he cheat? Three different sims voted for him," Charles says, his forehead scrunched.

"Quiet you!" Loki snarls.

Pascal bangs his fist down on the table. "This meeting is adjured!" He notes. Everyone stands up from the table and starts dispersing from the room. Circe picks up her black leather purse and throws her phone into it. She turns to Loki.

"I gotta go," she tells him, "I want to get back before Remy comes to the lab to check things over."

"Okay," Loki replies, still clearly upset. Circe swings her purse strap over her shoulder and waves goodbye, exiting the premises. Loki turns around, steaming as he sees Vidcund packing up his things at the end of the table.

He storms over to him, "I hope you know that you only won that mini-election because your friends voted you in!"

Vidcund stops what he is doing and stares at Loki. "Well, isn't that politics?" he asks.

"Laugh it up, Vidcund," Loki warns him, leaning close towards his enemy, his finger pointed in Vidcund's face, "Because once I'm in charge, I won't be dealing with any of this shit!"

"What shit?" Vidcund responds, clearly confused, "I've only been in office for five seconds."

"And what a disappointing five seconds it's been!" Loki exclaims; Vidcund rolls his eyes as he continues to pack up his things.

"Look," Vidcund begins, closing his briefcase and placing it on the table, "I don't know what your problem is, but there's no reason that the two of us can't get along. – Or at least pretend like we get along for the next-" Vidcund looks down at his watch, "-Twenty years," Vidcund completes, turning to Loki.

"You and I getting along? Now that's a laugh!" Loki states, flashing Vidcund a sinister smile, "Vidcund, you fool! You and I are two completely different breeds, and it's only a matter of time 'til the town sees you for what you really are – a weak, spineless, failure. Ta-ta!" Loki waves, before twisting on his heel and storming out the door, leaving Vidcund speechless and confused.

Pascal steps forward, having watched the entire display unfold. "Now don't tell me that's normal," he comments to his brother.

 _Strangetown – Present Day_

Hundreds of residents are gathered near the only entrance into the city, waiting for the buses to arrive. The buses came once every year to drop all of the returning residents back into the city. "Do you see it yet?" Lenda eXtreme asks her mother-in-law, poking her head slightly over the separator wall trying to glimpse around the hill. Gramma shakes her head.

"No, I haven't seen anyone come in here all day," she replies, "Maybe we got the wrong date."

Suddenly, a bus appears around the corner and enters into the city; the bus has the words 'Sim State University' painted on its side. The bus stops and opens its doors, but no one comes out. The bus driver looks to the crowd of sims and shrugs, before closing the doors once again and taking off down the street.

"Oh come on, I waited twenty-three hours for that?!" General Buzz exclaims, throwing his hands up in frustration, "After waiting that long, the least they could do is give Tank back," he states, "Ripp they can keep."

Lenda steps forward, her face filled with worry as she continues to gaze down the endless Road to Nowhere. "I don't get it, the kids were supposed to come home today. Where are they?" she asks her husband, Alban. "It's not like Isabella to be late," she comments.

"You're right bow-tie dress girl," General Buzz replies, half-ignoring what she is saying, "Where _is_ Ripp?"

…

Ripp groans as regains consciousness, slowly opening his eyes. He scans the room around him, his eyes adjusting to the sudden shift in light. All around him he sees an empty room, the wallpaper resembling that of a medieval-style house. Ripp looks down as he tries to move forward, now noticing that he is tied to a metallic chair. "Ugh," Ripp groans, "Where am I?"

"Why, you're in Strangetown my dear boy," Loki Beaker states, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. He walks towards his captured specimen, his facial expression sinister. "I finally have you in my grasp. And there's no escaping me," he snarls, looking up to the ceiling and giving one of his signature evil laughs. "Just think Ripp, after thirty years of tolerating others and pretending to be nice to people, this city is finally mine! After all, there's not a sim left in this universe that can take me out!"

Ripp raises his eyebrows, his hands still tied behind his back. "Man, you seem pretty sure about that," he notes.

Loki rolls his eyes, "Please," he states, throwing his arms out and pacing around the brown-tinted room, "If you think there's someone that can, just tell me who!" He states, mockingly over-exaggerating his words, "Show me the face of the triumphantly brave warrior that will stand in my way! Show me the face of a man who can stop me!"

 _Meanwhile: At the Safe House near Strangetown's Border_

Pascal is lying down passed out on the kitchen counter, drooling into the kitchen sink as he continues his trip through dreamland. "No mom," he sleep-talks, giving a snore, "I told you, that dress is too big, all the kids will know that it's fake!" he states, before flipping over and giving another snore, accidentally nudging Lazlo, who is sleeping on the floor beneath him.

Sitting at the kitchen table, Vidcund watches them, finding this situation particularly odd. He turns to Isabella, who is enjoying a bowl of cereal with him. "I don't get it," he says, taking a sip of his milk, "I mean, why don't they just sleep on the beds in the guest room?"

Isabella shrugs. "Maybe all of those months sharing that tiny dorm room with us changed their preferences," she suggests, watching as Tank and Kea walk over to the table. They pull out some chairs and take a seat across from Isabella.

"So, what's the plan for tomorrow?" Tank asks them, "We only have a day left until Loki's deadline is up, so I'm guessing we have to move fast," he states.

Vidcund nods. "Tomorrow we have to make and edit all of the recruitment videos," he informs them. Vidcund turns to Tank, "Did you decide whether or not you want to be the face of the rebellion?" he asks him.

Tank smiles and nods, "I'd be happy to," he responds, "Just try not to make me look crazy."

"Believe me, with Loki as our competition, that would be extremely difficult," Vidcund says, taking another swig of his milk. "Now come on, we need to gather everyone. We have a long day ahead of us, so we may as well get started!"

 _Three Hours Later_

Tank, Kea, Isabella, and the Curious brothers are standing in the basement of Vidcund's safe house, preparing to shoot the footage for the recruitment video. Pascal and Lazlo are setting up the cameras, while Isabella and Kea are watching from behind as Vidcund gives Tank further instructions about what he is going to say.

"In thirty seconds we're going to start rolling," Vidcund explains to Tank, "After I give you the signal, you're going to talk right at the camera and introduce yourself. Then you're going to talk about our rebellion and invite everyone to join the army and fight with us," Vidcund continues further, "Then you can say some sassy things to Beaker if you'd like – the audience might like that. And don't be afraid to be yourself, I mean there's a reason why we picked you for this mission, you have a really strong and unique personality."

"Thanks," Tank nods.

Vidcund steps back a bit, "Now just to warn you, this is going out live. We managed to hack into the airways a few minutes ago and we only have a limited amount of time until Loki notices, so this video has to get out as soon as humanly possible," Vidcund says, backing up further towards the main camera, "Okay, so we're ready to go. Now Tank, just look at the camera that Kea is holding and we'll start in three…two…one…!" Vidcund points his hand at Tank to go.

Tank smiles and looks into the camera that Kea is holding. "Hello," he calmly states, noticing that the label on the camera is backwards. "Uh…?" he begins, gesturing to Kea to turn it around.

"Oh sorry!" Kea whispers, playfully turning the camera the right way, before zooming in and focusing the camera on Tank.

"Greetings Strangetown," Tank begins once more, "My name is Tank Grunt."

Back in Strangetown, General Buzz is walking by his television set, stopping when he notices his eldest son flashing on the screen.

General Buzz steps forward, examining the broadcast more carefully. "Tank?" he states.

"You may know me as the eldest child of that crazy military guy that lives down the Road to Nowhere," Tank tells the audience, "Don't be afraid fellow citizens of Strangetown, that is, unless you're Loki Beaker – because your time as the evil dictator of Strangetown is over!" he announces, "Turns out people don't like it when someone enslaves your entire neighborhood, kidnaps your brother, and tries to kill their fiancé!" Tank growls, moving closer to the camera, "You've awoken a force bigger than you can handle, Beaker. And if you want the neighborhood, then you're going to have to go through me!"

In Loki's basement, Ripp lifts his head up, the sound of Tank's voice causing him to stir. "Tank? Is that you?" he mumbles, staring in the direction of one of Loki's many television monitors.

Loki steps forward, eyeing the young man that has appeared unwelcomed on his plastic TV. "What the hell…?"

"So join me citizens of Strangetown as we lead you to victory and let us take back the neighborhood together!" Tank exclaims, before calmly switching his demeanor, "That is all," he states seriously.

"We?" Lola repeats, watching her living room television with Crystal, Chloe, and Kristen sitting on either side of her. Crystal stops up in place from behind the couch, pointing her finger at the screen.

"Wait a minute!" Crystal proclaims, pointing to a metallic object that is standing in the background behind Tank, "What is _that_?!"

Kristen tilts her forehead, before staring at the young townie in confusion. "What do you mean?" she asks, "It just looks like it's some kind of machine," she notes.

"That's not just any machine," Crystal speaks, a smile growing on her face, "That's a proton accelerator!" she evaluates, "And there's only one person I know that knows how to make one!" She shrieks, jumping over the couch and hugging Lola, grabbing her by the shoulders. "They're back! They came back for us! I always knew Loki could never kill them!"

Lola, Chloe, and Kristen exchange strange looks with each other, thinking Crystal has lost her mind. "Well she is marked as insane," Chloe states, watching as Crystal leaps up from off of the couch and races out the door.

Kristen nods, "Now _that_ I believe."

All of a sudden an alarm goes off in the center of the city, Loki's voice blaring over the loudspeakers that are placed on every corner. "ALL CITIZENS MUST REPORT TO CITY HALL IMMEDIATELY! ANYONE NOT GATHERED THERE IN THE NEXT FIVE MINUTES WILL BE SEVERELY PUNISHED!" he shouts, his voice echoing throughout the town. The Singles household sighs and gets ready to leave.

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Safe House_

"Tank, that was awesome!" Lazlo comments, walking up to Tank and giving him a high-five immediately after they stopped filming. Isabella nods.

"Ripp would be proud," Isabella states, trying to force a smile, even though she has a sad look in her eyes.

"Now that we have the announcement out in the airwaves, we just have to get a few things organized before we leave tomorrow," Vidcund notes, clasping his hands together.

Kea walks over to Tank, fiddling with her hands a bit, "Hey Tank, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure," Tank answers, noticing the worried look that is in his wife's eyes, "I'll be back in a minute," he tells the others as he follows Kea into one of the guest bedrooms.

 _Five Minutes Later – At Strangetown City Hall_

Loki is standing at the black spiky podium that he stole from Strangetown's atrociously evil witch, Amber Pons, his army of alien guards standing behind him. To the right of him, Circe is sitting down on a chair, looking miserable and bored out of her mind. Loki steps forward and glares down at the crowd of citizens that are surrounding the stage, his stance powerful.

"By now, I'm sure you've all heard the rumors that Vidcund Curious has returned to Strangetown to reclaim the city-" He speaks into the microphone. One of the alien guards pats him on the back.

"Uh, sir?" he whispers, "The video said Tank, not Vidcund," he corrects him.

"Oh right," Loki says, "I'm not sure where I got that from – anyway," he continues, clearing his throat as he moves back towards the microphone, "I just wanted to assure you that these rumors are entirely false, and anyone who thinks otherwise is foolish and living in the past," Loki states, stopping to glare at some of the elder citizens that are standing in the crowd. "But to all of you who would still like to grasp onto that last tiny bit of hope, I can assure you that all three of the Curious brothers are as dead as The Sims 1. See? Here are their graves!" Loki exclaims, extending his hand out to present the pile of sand that the stage is standing in front of, still covered up by a tarp.

The alien guards uncover the sand pile behind Loki, where three grave makers have been planted, each with a gigantic coffin-sized hole dug in front of them. Loki looks behind them, widening his eyes in shock as he eyes the empty graves. He moves slightly away from microphone, covering it up with his hand.

"Are you guys idiots?! That's not convincing!" Loki snarls to the alien guards, "The graves aren't even filled in!" he informs them, groaning and covering his face with his hands. He quickly stops, now noticing that the entire town is watching him in wonder. "- Oh well," he states, uncovering his face again, "That doesn't matter, cause the three of them are still dead – and you can take that to the grave! – Or, er-" Loki quickly tries to correct himself, "Never mind. The three of them are dead, okay?"

Loki exhales, letting out a heavy sigh before continuing on with the rest of his monstrous, though highly unnecessary, speech. "Now due to the events of earlier today, I would just like to remind you that anyone who attempts to help a certain Grunt boy or any of those disgusting groundlings take back the city will be sentenced to _death_ and furthermore-" he rambles on.

In the audience, Charles nudges Crystal in the side before walking up and standing next to her, both of them staring straight ahead at Loki. "Hey Crystal."

"Yeah?" she states.

"If the city doesn't go under by the end of this week, I was wondering if you'd like to go on a date with me this weekend," Charles suggests, "We could go to that Italian place downtown that you really like."

Crystal shakes her head, her expression unchanged. "No thanks."

"Come on Crystal, he's been gone for almost three months now-" Charles begins.

Crystal turns around, her face firm. "I said no thank you," she says, weaving her way through the crowd.

"-Remember there are two types of sims in this world," Loki's voice continues to ring out through the speakers, hitting the crowd, "There are premade sims, and there are townies – and even though Vidcund is a premade sim, he is lower than a college townie in my eyes. Vidcund is a loser, he and his brothers were pathetic pieces of garbage that never even deserved to reside in this neighborhood!" Loki proclaims, this message causing Crystal to stop in her tracks. "And if there's anyone here among us that disagrees with me and wants to go and follow him, then get up and do so," he states, stopping to gesture threateningly down the pathway that is separating the premade sims from the townies, "There's the door," he challenges, stepping back from the podium so that he can thoroughly scan the crowd. Nobody takes a step.

Loki smirks, "Yeah, that's what I thought," he states, turning around in place and walking back towards the podium. The crowd gasps as someone moves into the aisle. Loki quickly swerves only to find Crystal standing smack dab in the center of the sand path, her arms crossed and her expression fierce.

"My, my, Crystal," Loki cooes, finding this rebellious display more childish than heroic, "Talk about the little townie that could."

"Say what you will, but I would never align myself with a murderer!" she counters, "You may be the leader of this town, but you are not the leader of its people – and you are certainly not the leader of me! And I would rather die defending the truth than live in safety amongst your lies."

Loki stares at Crystal, anger in his eyes. He suddenly breaks into a fit of maniacal laughter. "Oh Crystal Vu, you are a fool," he rhymes, pointing his black gloved hand at her. "Kill her!" he commands, "And splatter her blood on the floor!" He commands, watching as Crystal slowly inches backward. Loki holds his arms out, stopping the alien guards suddenly in their tracks. "Actually, never mind," he states, pulling out a laser sword, "Let me do it!" Loki turns on the weapon, the laser beaming bright red as he hops down from the stage, the alien guards aligning the crowd, shielding the residents from interfering.

Crystal steps back, still standing tall, though her legs are shaking slightly. She watches as Loki moves forward, closing the gap around her. Loki moves his arm back, Crystal looking up at him as he prepares to strike. All of a sudden Circe jumps off the stage, tackling Loki to the ground, his weapon flying in the opposite direction. It knocks into the wooden stage and destroys the side, causing the stage to collapse.

"Damn it Circe!" Loki curses, "You couldn't just wait until we got home?!" Circe gives a half-hearted smile and lightly shakes her head. Loki turns back to where Crystal was standing, but she is nowhere to be seen. "Shit! Not again!"

Loki looks to the alien guards, summoning some of them over. "Send out all of the troops and put her on red alert, I want that girl found and taken care of before the sun sets!" He commands; the alien guards nod and start dispersing around the city. Loki smirks in satisfaction before turning his attentions back to Circe, who is still sitting on top of him.

"And as for you," he states, "You and I have something important to discuss."

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Safe House_

"You're WHAT?!" Tank exclaims, staring down at Kea who is sitting on the white and teal quilted guest bed. She smiles, her hands clasped together in front of her.

"You heard me, Tank," she calmly replies, "I'm pregnant."

"Kea! Why didn't you tell me?" Tank asks, taking a seat on the bed next to his wife.

Kea looks to him, "I did. Right now," she clarifies.

"What I meant was, why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Well uh, I was going to," Kea begins, "But it never really seemed like the right time," she explains, "And now, with the war upon us, I just really needed you to know," she states, gently grabbing Tank's hand and squeezing it.

Tank looks up at her, his eyes filled with worry. "Kea…" he begins, moving towards her.

All of a sudden Pascal bursts into the room, Lazlo following in after him, carrying a laptop. "Hey guys, sorry if we're interrupting, but we're about to start the second and perhaps most dangerous part of the mission."

"And what's that?" Tank asks, glancing up at his friends.

Pascal shrugs, "I don't know, Vidcund didn't tell us yet. But he wants all of us to meet up in the living right now, so we should probably get moving on the plan."

Tank sighs, getting up from off of the bed. "Alright," he says, turning to Kea and helping her up as well.

A few minutes later, all of them are gathered in the living room, awaiting further instruction from Vidcund. Vidcund walks into the room and over to them, turning towards the blueprint that is taped across the back wall.

"Alright guys, dawn is approaching, which means it's the perfect time to proceed with the official phase two of our plan," he tells them, "For this part, two of us will be sneaking back into Strangetown and obtaining the graves from Olive's garden," He says, seriousness filling his voice, "This is an incredibly vital part of the mission, because if we can't get those graves back here, then we won't have a big enough army to take down Loki. I have elected to do this, because I feel it would be for the best and it would also allow me to test out those electronic headsets that I've been telling you about."

Lazlo raises his hand; Vidcund nods at him, granting him permission to speak. "Who's going with you?" he asks.

"-Bet you five bucks it's still Isabella," Pascal mutters to his youngest brother.

"Good question," Vidcund states, pacing over to the other side of the blueprint on the wall, "Accompanying me will be the only other sim who has gone to the garden successfully post-takeover without getting caught," he informs them. Stopping in his tracks and looking up at the chosen sim. "Isabella," he states, "Will you do this with me?"

Isabella gazes up at Vidcund and nods, swallowing as she does so. "Yes," she states flatly.

"Alright," Vidcund responds confidently, looking into her gray eyes, "We'll leave at dawn."

 _Meanwhile: At the Beaker Residence_

Loki and Circe are in basement of their residence, sitting in what was formerly Nervous Subject's bedroom. Circe is sitting on the bed with her arms crossed as Loki stands in front of her, his facial expression firm, but compassionate. Circe watches as Loki sits down on the bed next to her, giving a small sigh in the process.

"Circe," he begins, staring right at her, "Even though you betrayed me – first with the rebellion and then with helping Crystal escape from my clutches - All will be forgiven, if you do this one thing for me."

Circe turns to him, her ears burning. "I'm listening," she states.

"Good," Loki says, getting up from off of the bed and walking over to the computer desk, pulling something out of his pocket and hiding it behind his back.

He leans forward, lowering his voice gently. "Now listen to me carefully, because I'm only going to say this once and then it will be like this whole conversation never happened," He explains; Circe nods, "I want you to kill this girl," he demands, pulling out a photo of a familiar looking sim with gray eyes and bright red hair pulled back in a ponytail. "Her name is Isabella eXtreme, and she's becoming quite the _nuisance_ for me."

"Yeah, that's not going to happen," Circe says, waving her hand in front of her face, dismissing it.

Loki smirks, "I thought you might say that, but maybe this item that I found just the other day will change your mind."

Circe narrows her eyes as she watches Loki reach behind his back and pull out a glossy strip of paper. He hands it to his wife to look at, Circe slowly taking the paper strip from him. She turns the piece of paper around, only to find a set of photo booth pictures on the other side. She examines the images, looking at the each of the photos thoroughly. Circe gasps when she notices Vidcund in every one, smiling happily with his arms wrapped tightly around Isabella, who is smiling as well; a deep blush apparent on her face. Circe snarls, gripping the photo booth pictures harder.

Loki smirks as he paces in front of Circe, openly enjoying this moment. "My, my," he states, "It appears as though someone is trying to steal your man," he begins, turning towards her, "Normally I wouldn't care, but part of me doesn't want to see you hurt like I was," he states, turning to glare at her. "But you should have nothing to worry about, he's probably not interested in her anyway," Loki says, phoniness filling his voice, "I mean, just because she's younger and more compatible with him doesn't mean that he's going to lunge and take the bait," he continues encouragingly, "—It's not like you two had an _open_ relationship."

Circe throws the photos down, the strip of paper falling to the floor. She places her hands up to the sides of her face – her hands folded into fists, trying to control the rage that she is feeling and hoping to sooth her newfound headache. After a few minutes of this, Circe sighs, slowly moving her hands away from her face and looking up at her husband, her facial expression hard as a rock. "I'll do it," she states coldly, "But I'll do it my way."

Loki nods, crossing his arms in front of his body. "I don't care how you do it," he states, surprisingly un-snarky, "As long as it's done," he finishes, reaching down to pick up the photo booth pictures from the ground. He looks over the images and laughs at the young girl that is smiling in the photos. "Foolish girl doesn't even know that she only has a day to live…"


	2. Chapter 2: Deep Water

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Two_

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Safe House_

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Kea asks, watching as Isabella continues changing into all black attire, "I mean, you don't have to break into the city and risk your life just because Mr. Sexy Dreamboat told you to!"

Isabella turns to Kea, her face filled with confusion. "Mr. Sexy Dreamboat?" she repeats.

"Yeah, that's our codename for Vidcund now, because I know you have such a big crush on him," she states. Isabella sighs, stopping in the middle of putting on her jacket.

"Come on Kea, we've been through this," Isabella gently reminds her, "I don't like Vidcund anymore. Liking him brought me nothing but trouble in the last few months, and has distracted me from the real love of my life, Ripp."

Kea doubtfully raises her eyebrow, crossing her arms in front of her body. "Yeah well, when you're done living in a fantasy world filled with nothing but your own denials, let me know."

Isabella sighs as she adjusts the black beanie that is situated on her head. She turns back to Kea and smiles slightly, gesturing at her outfit. "So, what do you think?" she asks.

"I think it's kind of odd to wear a hat when your hair is still sticking out the back," Kea comments, "But if you want my opinion, I think you could pull off anything."

"Thanks Kea," Isabella says, "But unfortunately my hair couldn't fit into the hat," she tells her, "But there's a lot of people that have red hair, right?" she asks her friend.

Kea shrugs. "Well considering there are currently fifty-six people living in this house and you're the only one of us that has red hair – I would find that rather unlikely," Kea says, taking out a piece of bacon from her pocket and biting it.

"You're right," Isabella says, reaching up to pat her head. She sighs, "Maybe I should've dyed my hair when I had the chance-" A knock is heard at the door. "Yes?" Isabella speaks, the pair turning their attentions towards the source of the sound.

"Hey Izzy, are you ready to go?" Vidcund's voice rings out through the door, "We need to get in and out of the city before Loki sends all of his troops out for the nightly watch," he states.

"Yeah, I'm coming!" Isabella calls back, readjusting her hair underneath her beanie.

Kea smiles, gesturing Isabella towards the door. "Well come on, you don't want to keep him waiting!" she chimes, before moving her eyebrows up and down suggestively.

Isabella shakes her head, slightly irritated, though she adored her. "See you later, Kea," Isabella replies as she heads for the door. She exits into the hallway and stops, finding herself face-to-face with Vidcund, who is dressed in all black as well, but is surprisingly not wearing his glasses.

"So, are you ready to go?" he asks.

Isabella takes a deep breath and slowly releases it. "Yep," she says, her hands shaking a bit, "Let's do this." Vidcund nods as the pair walks down the hall and heads towards the front door. They stop in front of Pascal and Lazlo, who are both carrying laptops and wearing headsets.

"Great, looks like phase two of Operation 'Take Back the City Before Loki Kills Everyone' is good to go," Pascal announces, smiling at his teammates. "Remember to turn on your headsets before you get into the city," he informs them, "We'll be monitoring you guys the whole time, so we can help you out if you guys run into trouble."

"Right," Vidcund states with a nod, "Thanks guys."

"No problem," Lazlo replies, adjusting the headset to cover his ears, "Now go out there and get those graves!"

Vidcund nods once more, "We'll do our best," he states. Vidcund and Isabella turn to their friends, waving one last time before they head out the door and into the night, nothing but the mission on their minds.

 _Meanwhile: At the Beaker Residence_

Ripp is still tied up in the basement of the Beaker estate, groaning as he tries to adjust his body on the wooden chair. "Well, this is what my life has been reduced to now," Ripp states, talking aloud to keep himself from going crazy with loneliness, "I guess I'm not surprised, I always knew my life was going to be a complete and total failure. At least now I can live the rest of my short days in the basement of some weirdo's estate."

"Psh, please," Loki butts in, walking into the basement from the marble encrusted stairs, "You could've done a whole lot worse than this," he comments, "And who knows? Maybe you'll enjoy being a test subject. I mean, Nervous laughed sometimes…once every five years," Loki completes, trailing off a bit.

"Test subject?" Ripp repeats, groaning as he slouches down in his seat even further. "Why don't you just finish me off and get this whole thing over with?" he asks, desperation filling his voice.

"Because dear boy, you're worth more to me alive than dead," he states, pacing on the concrete-based floor in front of him, "Just think of yourself as live bait," he tells him, "By capturing you, I'll lure the others as they all attempt to save you. Of course they'll fail, and while they're doing that, I'll strike, killing everyone in the process!" Loki reveals, throwing his head up to the ceiling in a laugh, "Genius, isn't it?"

Ripp sighs, sinking further into his seat. "Yeah right," he claims, "They're not coming for me."

"On the contrary!" Loki interrupts, raising his finger up in point, "Vidcund wouldn't pass up the opportunity to look like a hero." Loki steps forward, "Look Ripp, I know you think Isabella will have no interest in helping you now that you've broken her heart, but I happen to know firsthand that that girl doesn't know when to take a hint," he snarls, clenching his fists a little as the warehouse rescue comes to mind.

Ripp slowly lifts his head up, gazing at Loki in shock, "How do you know that?" he asks him.

Loki laughs, turning towards his specimen for a moment. "Please," he begins, " _I know everything_."

Ripp looks down, a dreadful feeling forming in the pit of his stomach. " _Please Isabella, please don't come,"_ he thinks to himself, pleading silently with her in his head, _"Save yourself, if it's the last thing you do..."_

 _Meanwhile: At the Entrance of Slavestown_

Vidcund and Isabella are standing crouched behind the divider fence, peering into the city, attempting to stay out of sight. "Man, you weren't kidding when you said this place was rundown," Vidcund whispers to Isabella, scanning the city over with his binoculars. He stops to gaze up at the hill, where his residence once stood tall, and sighs, finding the Curious estate reduced to a few flimsy walls.

Vidcund quickly puts down the binoculars, unable to look at the city any longer, finding it almost too painful to bear. Vidcund looks to Isabella and nods, re-focusing his attention on the task before him. "Come on," he states, "Let's get up this fence." Isabella nods. They switch on their headsets.

 _"Be careful, it's barbed,"_ Pascal's voice rings into their headsets.

 _"Are you talking to Izzy? Hi Izzy!"_ Kea's voice chimes out in the background, _"Here let me talk to them!"_

 _"Kea, this is a very delicate operation-hey!"_ his voice rings as shuffling is heard in the background.

 _"So, how's it going?"_ Kea asks.

Isabella nods, "Pretty good," she reports, "We just have to get up this fence."

Vidcund stops in front of the barbed wire fence, staring up at the top of it. "Alright," he says, backing up a few feet, "Here I go."

Vidcund takes a few deep breaths before racing up the fence in one swift motion. He crosses over, looping his boots onto the other side, away from the wire. Isabella gazes up at him, clearly shocked.

He smiles, "What can I say? After General Buzz beat me up as a teen, I swore I would get into better shape," he comments, "Now come on, I'll help you up!"

Vidcund holds out his hands; Isabella grabs them before making her way up the side. She stops at the top, carefully avoiding the barbed wire as she loops her boots to the top of the fence as Vidcund had previously done.

"Good," Vidcund says, "Now here comes the hard part…" he states, gesturing to the landscape below. Isabella gulps as she stares down at the lake of mucky water that is situated beneath them; the water stretching over five hundred feet into the city.

"Do you think it's toxic?" she squeaks, the fog coming out of the top of the lake causing her to shudder.

"Does it matter?" Vidcund replies, his tone unsure as well, "Cause I'm still going in anyway."

Vidcund and Isabella turn to one another, giving a nod of confidence before staring back at the water below. The pair slowly stands, adjusting their boots on the fence so that they can properly launch off. Vidcund turns to Isabella, holding out his hand. Isabella slowly takes it and firmly nods. The two of them jump off of the gate at the same time.

Vidcund and Isabella land in the muggy greenish blue water, heaving their heads up above the surface to catch their breath. Isabella groans as she spits out some of the water, before swimming after Vidcund towards the other side of the lake. Fifteen minutes later, Isabella lets out a small cry, feeling her endurance fading.

"I can't, it's too far!" she struggles to speak between breaths.

Vidcund stops and turns back to her, swimming in place to stay afloat. "Yes, you can. Just grab onto me, we're almost there," he tells her.

Twenty minutes later, Vidcund and Isabella climb out of the water, having reached the shore. They stop and stare up at the city surrounding them, experiencing the destruction firsthand that, until then, they had only heard about. "Oh my gosh," Isabella says, stepping towards the Road to Nowhere, which has been reduced to painted dirt and rumble, "What happened to Strangetown?" she asks, looking up at Olive's residence, which now has the roof torn off of it.

"Loki," Vidcund replies, stepping further onto what used to be the road. He stops, a poster that is taped to a broken streetlamp catching his eye. "Crystal," Vidcund exclaims, keeping his voice hushed as to not draw attention. The poster has a picture of the young townie on it with the caption: _If you see me, KILL._ "Man, I never thought she'd be the one to cause a ruckus," Vidcund states, folding the poster up and tucking it in his pocket. "Let's get to Olive's," he states. The pair heads down the Road to Nowhere.

"Aren't you worried that someone will recognize you?" Isabella asks, as they make their way to the Specter estate, surprisingly out in the open.

"Nah," Vidcund responds, waving his hand down, "For some reason people can't recognize me when I don't have my glasses on."

Nearby, two alien guards are leaning up against a mailbox watching them walk down the street; one of them squints his eyes. "Hey, isn't that Vidcund Curious?" he asks, pointing his white-gloved hand at him.

The other alien guard narrows his eyes, watching as Vidcund and Isabella cross over into a private residence. "Nah, Vidcund has glasses," he informs him.

"Oh, that's right," the first alien guard replies, nodding in agreement from his standing position.

Vidcund and Isabella slowly walk onto Olive Specter's lot, go around the fence, and head into the backyard. They move forward, stopping when they come to the garden. "Okay," Vidcund speaks suddenly, "I'll get the ones in the back, you get the ones in the front," he tells her, stepping forward.

"Wait!" Isabella calls out, grabbing Vidcund by the arm and pulling him back. She picks up a rock from off of the ground and chucks it into the garden. A land mine explodes when the rock hits the ground, cracking the rock into a million pieces.

"Holy shit," Vidcund curses; his voice filled with shock.

"You knew he wasn't going to make it that easy," Isabella says, carefully moving towards the front of the garden. "Let me get them, I'm lighter than you. Maybe I can feel it out."

Vidcund watches as Isabella moves towards a gravestone, gently grabbing a hold of it with her hands. "Careful Izzy," he says as Isabella picks up the grave and carries it in her arms.

 _"Landmines are usually no more than three feet apart,"_ Lazlo informs them from their headsets, _"Mark where the first one went off, then go from there."_

"Right," Vidcund nods. He takes a stick and draws a light circle marking the area. He picks up the graves that are situated within the circle. "Willow Nigmos, this is your lucky day," he states, putting the grave into his inventory.

One by one the pair takes the graves, slowly clearing out Olive's garden. "We're doing well, there's just one more to go," Vidcund says, eyeing the final gravestone that is near the back of the garden.

Isabella slowly tip toes over to the last grave, gently rocking it back and forth to nudge it out of the sand. She grabs it and pulls it out of the dirt, sighing as she successfully slips it into her inventory. "There," she states, wiping the sweat off of her forehead with her forearm. "That's the last of them," she announces, before delicately making her way out of the garden.

"Izzy look out!" Vidcund exclaims as the ground begins to shake beneath them. Isabella races out of the garden and grabs a hold of him, the pair ducking for cover.

Suddenly, a gigantic stream of sand bursts out from above the ground and knocks into them; Vidcund and Isabella both hit by a huge waterfall of sand. After a few moments, the sand ceases, leaving the sims covered with the dusty, tan substance from head to toe.

Vidcund steps back, attempting to shake the sand off of his arms and legs in one swift motion. "Well, that went better than expected," he sarcastically states.

Next to him, Isabella looks up, shaking her arms out as well – her face smiling at the sight of him. She begins to laugh, her laughter causing Vidcund to loosen up. In a few seconds, he is laughing along with her.

"There was no way that we were going to be able to disable these things professionally, huh?" Vidcund asks with a smile.

"Not a chance," Isabella replies, heading towards the exit of the estate with him.

"Actually, before we go – can we stop somewhere first?" Vidcund asks Isabella, stepping off the property. "There's someone I really need to see."

 _Five Minutes Later_

Vidcund and Isabella are standing on the porch of a beautiful yellow townhouse, the front lawn remarkably still growing decent grass. Vidcund rings the doorbell, then steps back, waiting for the desired sim to answer. No one does.

"Huh," Isabella states from behind him, "Maybe nobody's home."

"No, she's here. She's gotta be," Vidcund replies, straining his neck trying to gaze through the door windows. He stops and begins pounding on the white wooden door.

"Who is it?" a voice sounds from the other side, sounding rather unwelcoming.

"It's me," Vidcund responds, careful not to say his name while he is still in public, "Open the door."

Vidcund and Isabella hear the person unlock the door. They slowly open it a crack, revealing the side of their face. "Vid? Is that you?" the woman states, her voice filled with shock.

"Yes, now can you let me in?" he asks.

Jenny nods, quickly opening the door and letting the pair inside before anyone can see. "Vidcund!" Jenny exclaims, throwing her arms around him and wrapping him tightly in a hug, "What are you doing here?!" she asks, putting him at an arms' length, "I thought you were dead!"

Vidcund smiles, "Well, as always, the rumors of my death were greatly exaggerated," he says, stepping further into the house. "I mean, come on, you know Loki can never follow through on anything," he continues, noticing that Jenny is staring at Isabella strangely, "Oh uh, this is Isabella," he tells her, "She's my- my friend," Vidcund explains, gesturing Isabella towards Jenny, "She's the one that saved us from dying a bloody and tragic death."

"Oh," Jenny comments, leaning forward and shaking her hand, "Nice to meet you, Isabella. I'm Jenny, I'm Vidcund's older sister. I'm sure you've met my son, Johnny."

"Yes," Isabella nods.

Jenny nods awkwardly back before turning her attention to Vidcund once more. "So, how have you been? How's Pascal and Lazlo?" she wonders further, "Johnny said he saw you at a trial, but I thought he was just hallucinating because he missed you," Jenny explains.

"I'm fine," Vidcund answers, "Pascal gave birth to a girl. Her name is Amelia and she is adorable," he informs her, "And Lazlo has been tolerating us like he usually does."

Jenny smiles, "I'm glad. So what brings you to Strangetown?" she asks him, "I know it's not the most pleasant place to be these days…"

Vidcund nods, his expression dead serious. "We're taking back the city."

"What?!" Jenny exclaims, "Vidcund, that's a terrible idea! You'll get killed!" she proclaims.

"I know," Vidcund replies, letting out a sigh, "But Strangetown's dying, Jenny. And I need your help."

Jenny crosses her arms, "Nuh-uh, no way," she states, shaking her head, "This war is nothing but a petty feud between you and Beaker that has been looming in this city for years," She firmly articulates, "– And I want no part of it."

"Jenny-!" Vidcund objects.

"I mean it Vid, you two have been at each other's throats since grade school," Jenny reminds him, "I wasn't a part of your feud then, and I'm not going to be a part of it now – especially when I have so much to lose," she tells him, "I almost lost all three of you, I don't want to lose my husband and kids, too," Jenny confesses, tears forming in her eyes.

Vidcund steps forward, placing his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. "Look, I get it. I get why you don't want to take a stand, but what Loki is doing is wrong," Vidcund tries to explain, "This isn't just a petty feud, the well-being of our city at stake," he continues, "And I don't know about you, but I don't want my child to live in a city run by a corrupt dictator who kills anyone that's brave enough to speak their mind," Vidcund states; Isabella nodding behind him.

"Jenny, we have to do this now. We have to group together and rise against him. We may never get another chance like this again!" Vidcund pleads, looking straight into his sister's eyes. "Jenny, listen to me, we can win this. I've never lied to you before, and I'm not going to start now. This war is winnable, but we may have to make some sacrifices-"

"And that's it, that's the whole thing," Jenny begins, "I'm not willing to make sacrifices in this, Vid. I shouldn't have to!" she argues further, "I wasn't the one who caused the city to spiral. I had no part in that," she firmly states, taking a stand, "Vidcund, I love you, but this is your war, not mine. I can't stand beside you," she concludes, watching as Vidcund looks down at the carpet, visibly hurt.

Vidcund stands in silence. Isabella slowly walks over to him and places a reassuring hand on his shoulder. After a few seconds Vidcund looks up, staring into Jenny's eyes. "Your points are valid. That's fair enough," he states almost robotically; Vidcund turns to Isabella, "Let's go, Izzy," he states.

Isabella nods. Jenny watching as the pair makes their way to the front door. Isabella accidentally knocks into the end table, knocking over a small brass alien statue on the way out. "Sorry," she apologizes, picking up the small statue and placing it in Jenny's arms. Jenny glares, somewhat frustrated by the young woman's clumsiness.

Vidcund and Isabella make their way down the steps, Jenny lightly closing the door behind them. Isabella turns to Vidcund, reaching her hand out to her friend. "Vid, I'm so sorry-" she begins.

"-Don't be," Vidcund interrupts her, "I completely understand and respect her decision," he reassures her, "She's my sister after all."

The pair continue walking down the Road to Nowhere, the flickering of the streetlamps the only sound among them. All of a sudden a figure appears in the distance, holding her hand out towards them.

"Your future is rapidly approaching!" the old woman calls out, her white and red dress blowing gently in the breeze.

"Uh…?" Isabella replies, stopping in her tracks – not sure whether to run or talk to the elderly woman. Vidcund nudges her in the side.

"Relax," he tells Isabella, "That's just Margaret Collins. She's the town's Gypsy Matchmaker."

Isabella tilts her head, "You know her name?" she states, slightly confused.

Vidcund smiles, "Of course. I was the mayor, I know everyone in the city," he says, stopping in front of Margaret.

She gazes up at him, squinting her eyes. "Vidcund Curious, I had a feeling you were coming. I had a vision of your arrival," she informs him.

"Hey Margaret, how have you been doing?" he asks the Gypsy Matchmaker, "I was wondering, since you're here, if you would mind doing a few readings for us? With the war approaching and everything, it might do us a lot of good," he analyses.

Margaret ponders this for a moment, before looking back at him and giving a small nod. "Alright," she agrees, "Step into my office…"

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Safe House_

Pascal, Lazlo, Brent, and Kea are sitting on the couch in the living room watching television while Vidcund and Isabella are on the mission. Tank walks into the room, carrying a bowl of noodles. "Hey," he greets, walking over to the couch, "What are you guys watching?"

"Loki started airing these anti-Strangetown Army ads against us to drive people away from offering us assistance," Lazlo tells him, "They're hilarious!"

"Yeah," Pascal agrees, "You can tell that he's really scrapping for material."

"Neat," Tank says, before taking a seat on the cushion next to Kea.

" _Tank Grunt,"_ the television blares in front of them, _"Pees in his pants and cries like a little girl!"_

Brent laughs as the television flashes a black and white photo of Tank looking angry on-screen. Tank glares at him. "What?" he speaks, "You have to admit, some of these are pretty funny!"

" _Tank Grunt,"_ the television sounds once more, _"He sleeps with college townies!"_

"Hey! That one's about me!" Kea exclaims, surprisingly excited by this fact. Tank groans, slapping his face in frustration.

Meanwhile, in the basement of the Beaker estate, Ripp is watching the ads as well.

He shakes his head, still tied up in the lair. "Twenty-five years of material and that's the best he can come up with?" he states, "Man, I can think of at least ten things Tank has done that are worse than that!"

Back at the safe house, the others are still watching the advertisements. "Even if you don't like Loki, you have to admit, he got these ads out pretty fast," Pascal says, stuffing a handful of popcorn in his mouth. "I mean, they've been airing these things for three hours straight and I have yet to see a repeat!"

" _Vidcund Curious,"_ the television speaks once more, _"He peed in his pants on prom night!"_

Pascal laughs, "Good to know that rumor's going around again."

 _"Just to let you know," V_ idcund rings out from his headset, _"I am glaring at you all the way from Strangetown."_

"Duly noted," Pascal responds, throwing a fistful of popcorn into his mouth.

 _Meanwhile: Back in Strangetown_

Vidcund and Isabella are sitting in a small black tent that is aligned with yellow neon stars, staring at a small table that is situated in front of them. The table is draped with velvet and has a small blue pillow on it, a crystal ball nestled inside of the luxury item. Vidcund and Isabella exchange intrigued glances with one another, both of them turning off their headsets before Margaret walks over to them and takes a seat down on the other side of the table. She hovers her hands above the crystal ball, her eyes filled with intensity. She closes her eyes as she waves her hands above the crystal ball, quietly humming a tune.

"So," Vidcund begins, scooting forward in his chair, "What do you see?" he asks.

Margaret continues to hum. She then opens her eyes, staring straight into the distance – wrinkling her brow. "I see…darkness ascending over Strangetown," she reads. "The city is in great peril."

Vidcund sighs, this news rather upsetting. "Oh," he says, "So we won't win the war?" he asks.

Margaret shakes her head, "Oh, you'll win the war," she answers, circling her hands over the crystal ball in a soothing motion. "But it'll be at a terrible price," she explains, gesturing between the two of them, "One of you two won't make it out alive."

At this news, Vidcund and Isabella turn to each other, their faces filled with sadness and dread. "Are you sure?" Vidcund asks, the pair still in shock.

"Ooh! Wait!" Margaret calls out, closing her eyes in a greater attempt to focus, "I see something else! I see love!" she beams, "It's so beautiful-"

"Yeah, great," Vidcund says, his mind still focused on the previous reading, "But about the death – is there anything we can do about that?"

Margaret sighs as she slowly puts her hands down, clasping them delicately in her lap. "I'm sorry, but the spirits have left us. That is all that I can tell you," she says, adjusting some of the bangles on her arms.

Vidcund looks down at the floor and nods, accepting this. "Alright," he states, "Thank you, Margaret." Vidcund and Isabella get up from out of their seats and head towards the door.

Margaret moves forward, the spirits calling her like the wind. She jumps up out of her seat, extending her hand out to Isabella who is about to exit through the door. "Beware of the balcony!" she proclaims. Isabella stops in the doorway and turns to her, a puzzled expression on her face.

The pair stops on the side of the road and looks at one another, their faces filled with uneasiness, as neither one of them says a word.


	3. Chapter 3: Metropolis

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Three_

"Do you think it's true? That one of us is really going to die?" Isabella asks Vidcund. The two of them are walking down the Road to Nowhere after having met up with Margaret Collins, the Gypsy Matchmaker. Vidcund shrugs.

"I don't know," he answers, "Lazlo's the one who's into fortune tellers and all that stuff. I'm not sure how accurate Margaret is with her readings. Would it really make that much of a difference if we knew if it was true or not?" he asks.

"Well, it would be nice to know if tomorrow is going to be my last day on earth," Isabella responds, stopping in her tracks.

Vidcund stops as well and turns to her. "Izzy, you have nothing to worry about," he reassures her, "If anything, it would be me, not you. I'm the one that's going after the killer."

"What are you talking about?" Isabella asks, clearly taken off-guard.

"I said I'm going after Loki myself, did you not know?" he asks; Isabella shakes her head. "Oh…well, surprise, I guess," Vidcund states, sticking his hands in his pockets as they continue walking down the street; Isabella looking rather sad.

All of a sudden, she gasps and ducks behind a street sign, pulling Vidcund by the arm and moving him behind her. "What is it?" Vidcund asks, crouching behind his friend.

Isabella stays where she is, scanning the area for any suspicious sims. "Sorry," she apologizes, "I thought I saw someone."

"Oh," Vidcund speaks, moving closer to her, his voice still hushed, "Hey Izzy, about what happened earlier with Margaret and all…I think it would be best if we didn't tell anyone about it," he states, "I don't want anyone to worry, especially when we have such a large task in front of us," Vidcund explains.

Isabella turns to him and nods, the reality of the situation hitting her hard. "Okay," she nods, swallowing a little, "We can just keep that between you and me."

Vidcund nods and switches his headset back on; Isabella following his actions. They slowly slip out of the area and race towards the muggy lake, stopping in front of it. Isabella sighs, gazing down at the water that had previously caused her so much trouble.

"Let's get this over with," she states.

"Hey! What do you two think you're doing?" a snarly voice rings out. Vidcund and Isabella quickly turn towards each other in a panic, watching as two alien guards storm after them, closing the gap.

"Dang it!" Isabella exclaims, a pleading look in her eyes, "Now what?"

Vidcund leans down a bit towards her, surprisingly calm. "Well, how did you get rid of them last time?" he asks.

Almost immediately, Isabella pushes Vidcund up against the wall, pushing her body up against him. "Quick! Pretend to make out with me!" Isabella whisper exclaims.

Vidcund's face flushes, "What?"

"Last time the guards left Ripp and I alone when they thought we were just some crazed lovers," she explains frantically, grabbing the sides of his face, "Now quick! We don't have much time!" She warns as the pair leans towards each other. Isabella stops, watching as the guards leave the area, a group of suspicious individuals catching their eye.

She sighs and backs away from Vidcund. "Phew, that was a close one!" Isabella states, giving a quick sigh of relief. "Now come on, let's swim across before they come back."

Vidcund continues to stand there, his stature stunned. "Alright," Vidcund agrees, his response delayed as he walks over to the edge of the water to join Isabella. Suddenly, he stops, a poster of Loki catching his eye. "Actually, hang on a second, just let me do one thing," he tells her, walking over to the poster, which shows Loki smiling evilly in a triumphant position.

He takes out a marker and begins scribbling on the poster, Isabella stepping over to watch him. After a few moments, Vidcund leans back, caps his black marker, and smiles. "Perfect!" Vidcund announces, turning to Isabella, "I just made some slight modifications," he says, placing the marker back into his coat pocket.

Isabella steps forward and looks at the poster. Some of the letters from the original saying have been scribbled out, and a giant word bubble is coming out of Loki's mouth as he enthusiastically declares, "I eat cat poop!" Isabella laughs. "You're so mature," she comments.

"I know," Vidcund replies, "Now let's go!" he exclaims, leading Isabella towards the lake. They jump into the water and start their five hundred foot swim.

"Gosh, this is a whole harder than I remember," Isabella states between strokes, her breath growing heavier by the minute. She pushes forward, her leg cramming up in the water. She looks up, Vidcund's figure disappearing in front of her. She lifts her head up, crying, "Vid!" before sinking into the muggy green water, the pains getting the most of her.

Vidcund continues forward, unable to hear her cries as he moves further into the fog. Vidcund turns around, noticing that it is oddly silent behind him. "Izzy?" Vidcund calls out, scanning the area. "Izzy!" Vidcund cries once more, he ducks down into the water and swims forward. He gasps, seeing what appears to be Isabella falling deeper to the bottom. He dives onward, catching her in his arms and heaving up her to the surface.

Isabella coughs up some water, her face turning back to its original pale color. "It's okay, it's okay," Vidcund tells her over and over, "I got you. Are you alright?" he asks, watching as Isabella coughs up a string of seaweed and some more lake water.

Isabella nods, her eyes tearing up a bit. "Yeah," she says, her voice cracking a tad, "Sorry." She pauses, "Gosh those stones are heavy!"

"I know," Vidcund states, his eyes shining with utmost concern, "So just hang onto me, okay?"

Isabella nods, finding his compassion rather touching. She hops on his back and wraps her arms around his shoulders. They trek forward.

Fifteen minutes later the pair pull themselves out of the water, shaking out their clothes once they reach shore. Isabella turns to Vidcund, her hair still sopping wet. "Look, I'm really sorry about what happened back there-" she begins.

"Isabella, it's my fault," he states, taking the blame, "I should have been paying attention to where you were-"

"No. No," Isabella repeats, firmly shaking her head, "I should've been taking care of myself. After all, it's just me now," she says, heading over to the fence, leaving Vidcund to ponder.

"Right, of course," he carefully articulates, seemingly conflicted about this news. Vidcund walks over to the fence and climbs up along with her, both of them making it safely to the other side.

A couple of hours later, they make it back to the safe house. Vidcund rings the doorbell; Pascal answers the door.

"Hey Vidcund," Pascal greets, "I see you're wearing clothes this time…"

Vidcund glares at his older, his mouth in a line, "Don't make this creepy."

Pascal moves back, granting them entry into the house. Vidcund and Isabella step inside, immediately surrounded by their friends and family.

"Hey! You guys made it back!" Kea exclaims, giving Isabella a hug, "That's great! Now I don't have to serve this sympathy cake," she admits, holding up a yellow sheet cake which reads: 'Sorry about your friends' on it in pastel blue icing.

Pascal eyes the cake over, licking his lips slightly. "But we're still going to eat it, right?"

"Oh yeah," Kea replies, complete with a huge grin and a nod.

"So, did you get the graves?" Lazlo asks, watching as Vidcund and Isabella throw off their first layer of clothes.

Vidcund smiles, "Yep. We got everybody. Here, take Earl." He reaches into his inventory and pulls out Earl E. Demise's gravestone and hands it to Lazlo. Lazlo takes it and falls over, the gravestone landing on top of him.

"Ooooh," Lazlo groans. He slowly pulls himself up off the ground and places the gravestone in the kitchen, sitting down at the table next to it. Vidcund walks over to Lazlo, pulling the wanted poster out of his pocket and plopping it down on the table in front of him.

"Oh, and we found your girlfriend," Vidcund states, pointing to the photo of Crystal that is plastered in the center.

Lazlo delicately picks it up and looks at the photo, which still has the words, 'If you see me, KILL' written underneath it. "Hey, she looks pretty good in that photo!" he exclaims.

Vidcund takes the newspaper from atop of the table and slaps the back of Lazlo's head. "You're completely missing the point," Vidcund tells him, "Crystal is now a wanted criminal, all because she swore revenge on Loki for killing you," Pascal turns to Vidcund, eyeing him wondrously, "We were just in the city; it was the talk of the town!" Isabella nods in agreement.

Lazlo gazes forward, clutching the sides of the paper tighter as he starts to beam. "She swore revenge on Loki for killing _me_?" he squeaks, a marvelously gigantic smile forming on his face. His eyes begin to twinkle.

"Oh gosh, look at his face," Pascal states, accusingly nudging Vidcund in the side with his elbow, "What have you done?"

Everyone watches as Lazlo leans out of his chair, collapsing on the floor in happiness.

"Yes! She loves me!" he exclaims, clearly love-struck and out of it, "She loves me, Earl!" Lazlo proclaims, reaching over and pulling the gravestone towards him, hugging it in glee.

"Uh, that thing's been touching thirty-year-old compost for a while, so you might not want to put it against your face," Vidcund comments, slightly weirded out by Lazlo rubbing the gravestone against his cheek.

Isabella steps over to him. "So, now what?" she asks, awaiting further instruction.

"Well," Vidcund begins, "I'm going to go take a shower and get this muck out of my hair, and you should probably do the same," he comments. He then turns towards the others, "After that, we'll meet in the basement for phase three of the plan."

The rest of the team – minus Lazlo who is still lying down on the floor – nods, heading down to the basement.

 _Thirty Minutes Later_

The team is gathered in the basement of the secret house, awaiting further instruction. Vidcund is standing in front of the group, the large blueprint of the plan positioned behind him. "Alright, it's now time for phase three of Operation Overthrow-" Vidcund begins.

Pascal raises his hand, tilting his head in confusion. "Wait, I thought it was Operation Pillow-man."

"And I thought it was Operation Gigaboop," Lazlo cuts in. "Oh wait, no, that was our internet password. Everyone forget that!" Lazlo declares, throwing his hands up in front of his torso.

Vidcund shakes his head. "Anyway," he states, turning his attention back to the board, "Tonight we're going to start testing the Resurrect-O-Nomitron," Vidcind informs them, "That way, when Brent and Breanna take over this task tomorrow, they'll know how to do it." Brent and Breanna nod, each of them taking a few notes.

Vidcund smiles and steps over to the Resurrect-O-Nomitron, which is situated on the floor next to the blueprint wall. "Before we begin, it's important to note that the Grim Reaper is a rather odd character-"

"Believe me, you don't need to tell me twice!" Kea interrupts, sporting a grin.

Vidcund continues on, "-So, just be careful when you talk to him. He's oddly sensitive about his role in society," he explains, stopping in front of the device, "Keep it short and simple." Vidcund's eyes drift down to the Resurrect-O-Nomitron, his stomach churning a bit when he sees it. He sighs, finding strength in the people that are counting on him. "Alright," he says, "I'll call him now…"

Vidcund picks up the small beige phone and dials it, placing it delicately against his ear. Behind him, the others are holding their breath, minus Kea who is looking at a painting of a butterfly on the wall next to the television.

" _Hello?_ " the Grim Reaper's grizzly voice rings out from the other end.

"Hey Death, how are you doing? It's Vidcund," Vidcund casually states, attempting to keep his cool. Vidcund turns away from the others, finishing the rest of his conversation in private. After a few more words, he hangs up the phone, situating it in the center of the oozing orange fog bath. "He says it'll just take a minute," he informs his friends, who are still looking rather worried.

All of a sudden, a red fog cloud forms in the center of the room as a figure appears in the center of it, separating Vidcund from the others. Vidcund coughs and waves his arm in front of his face, hoping to redirect the fog out the window.

The sim gazes down at their hands and wiggles them before jumping up in the air in joy. "It's a miracle! I'm alive!" Glarn Curious exclaims, gazing around the room. His eyes stop on his sons, "And-Oh great, what did you do?" he asks, crossing his arms, "I distinctly remember telling you before I died not to resurrect me unless the city was in life-threatening danger!"

Pascal throws his hands out in celebration, "I love you too, Dad!"

"Well, it worked," Vidcund says, biting his lower lip and looking to his brothers. They nod, watching as Vidcund walks over to their father. "Look Dad, we're sorry if you we interrupted your afterlife or giant party or whatever the heck happens after you die, but we need your help," Vidcund starts to explain, "You see, Loki kinda took over the neighborhood and enslaved everybody, and then he tried to kill us, and the city is pretty much done for unless we act today."

Glarn scrunches his forehead, "Loki? As in Loki Beaker, Loki?" he repeats, making sure that he did in fact hear his son correctly, "Is that the same kid that made you wet your pants at prom and then stole your girlfriend?" he asks. Vidcund groans, placing his hand in front of his face in embarrassment, before nodding yes. "Don't tell me that you're still fighting with him."

"Well, uh, you see-" Vidcund begins, rubbing the back of his neck. "-He started it, really," he assures him.

"Vid's right, dad," Pascal speaks up, "Loki was only after him because he was jealous that Circe liked him first," he explains, "I think that's part of the reason why he chose to run against Vidcund in that mayoral election a few years ago."

"Vidcund, you ran for mayor?' Glarn asks, rather surprised by this news. Vidcund opens his mouth to speak, but is interrupted by his little brother.

"Actually, Vidcund was mayor for six years," Lazlo interrupts him, "Then Loki won against him, and things went south from there…and that's around the time where we ended up in that abandoned warehouse-"

"So dad," Vidcund cuts in, "You want to help us win the war?" he asks.

Glarn shrugs, "Well I don't see why not, I don't have anything else to do," he answers, stepping towards the kitchen, "Hey, do they still make those mini pies at the bakery downtown?"

Vidcund scrunches his forehead, "Uh, I think so."

"Perfect!" Glarn exclaims, "Then we have a city to save!"

 _Meanwhile: At the Beaker Estate_

Ripp groans as he sits in the basement, listening to Loki and Circe argue on the floor above him. "Well, if they wanted to torture me, then they're doing a pretty good job of it." Ripp sits up as he hears one of them stomping down the stairs. He closes his eyes.

"Quit the act boy, I know you're not asleep," Loki states, crossing his arms in front of his body.

Ripp opens his eyes and looks up at him, "Sorry."

"You want to know something pathetic?" Loki asks, not bothering to give Ripp time to answer, "Nine years of marriage, and she still likes Vidcund better than me!" Loki tells him, "And I don't see him getting a PhD in Astrophysics and buying her a house!" he declares. Loki leans up against the wall and grumbles.

"Ouch, that's gotta be rough," Ripp says, squinting in the hopes of saving his eyes from the burning light that is shining down on him. "If you don't mind me asking, why did you marry her anyway?"

"What are you, blind? She's obviously the hottest person in the neighborhood! Well, other than me of course," he adds, gently placing his hand on his chest, showcasing himself. "She's also devious and I figured if I married her, then Vidcund couldn't," he explains.

"So you married her mostly out of spite?" Ripp asks, finding this conversation oddly intriguing.

Loki nods, "Not like it matters anyway, cause that didn't really seem to stop anything. I know she still sleeps with him. I don't understand why, but for some reason women find Vidcund appealing," he vents, "If it's because of his fashion sense, then there's really no saving society."

"Ah," Ripp begins.

"-And he's not even all that smart!" Loki continues to ramble, pacing around on the tile in front of Ripp. "I mean, I have more degrees than he does!" he exclaims, "Women must only like him because he was the _mayor,_ " Loki states, squeaking his voice mockingly at the last word, "He's also so easy to control, that's probably why they want him – but I don't have to tell you, I mean, I'm sure you already know."

Ripp scrunches his forehead, "Already know what?"

Suddenly, Loki's watch starts beeping out of control. He turns to Ripp, holding his finger out to wait, "Hang on a second, I got to take this," Loki replies, turning towards the exit and racing up the stairs, something falling from his pocket and onto the floor.

Ripp looks down at the object, gasping when he sees the glossy photo booth pictures of Vidcund and Isabella together laying on the tile. Ripp has never seen Isabella look so happy.

"- _Shit,_ " he curses.

 _Meanwhile: At the Safe House_

Vidcund and Glarn are busy at work modifying a few more of the devices for the upcoming mission. Vidcund is tightening a few bolts while Glarn watches. "So, how have you been doing? I mean, other than the city tanking, have you been staying out of trouble?" Glarn wonders further, looking down at his son.

Vidcund nods. "Well, I'd say that I've been doing fairly well considering the circumstances," he replies, tightening another bolt.

"So, do I have any grandchildren?" Glarn asks him.

"I have a kid with Circe," Vidcund answers, still intently focused on the task at hand.

Glarn smiles, "That's great!"

Vidcund softly nods and nervously swallows, not wanting to think about the whole circumstance. "Yeah…"

Pascal walks by, stopping in front of the pair and nudging Vidcund gently in the shoulder. "Did you mention that Circe is married to Loki?" he asks.

Vidcund groans as Glarn shakes his head, clearly disappointed, "Oh Vidcund," he states.

The phone starts ringing in the kitchen, pepping the team up a bit. "Hey! An incoming call!" Pascal exclaims, racing over to the phone and picking it up. "Talk to me," he greets.

"Pascal? Is that you?" a female voice rings from the other end, "It's Jenny!"

"Oh hey, Jenny," Pascal responds, "I can't clarify whether or not this is Pascal, in the off-chance this line is being tapped, but I can assure you that I – an unknown individual – have heard great things about this dashingly exquisite brother of yours." Jenny laughs, "Why are you laughing?" he jokingly asks.

Jenny sighs, trying to catch her breath, "So, what have you guys been up to?" she asks, "It's been a while since I've been graced by your presence," she explains.

"Oh, you know, the usual," Pascal answers, "So, when are you meeting up with us?" he asks, "I can't wait to see you."

Jenny sighs, "Sorry, but I already told Vidcund yesterday when he was at the house that I'm not teaming up with you guys. I'm impartial in this whole charade," she says, breaking the news to him lightly.

Pascal scrunches his eyebrows, clearly confused, "Wait, Vidcund was there?"

"Yeah," Jenny replies, not giving it a second thought, "He came over here earlier with his girlfriend."

"Circe?" Pascal asks, more confused than ever.

"No," Jenny speaks, "The girl with the ponytail."

"Isabella?" Pascal states, "Oh, she's not his girlfriend," he explains, "She's-well, I don't know what she is, honestly."

"Really? She's not his girlfriend?" Jenny says, seemingly surprised by this, "Huh. I could've sworn she was based on the way he was looking at her."

Pascal slowly puts down the receiver, this comment causing his mind to fill with uncertainty and wonder. He looks over at Vidcund who is happily modifying another machine with their father. Pascal begins to ponder.

"Hello? Hello?" Jenny's voice rings out from the receiver, "Are you still there?"

Pascal quickly shakes his head, snapping back into reality – or at least, what he thought was reality. "Yeah, I'm here. Sorry about that," Pascal apologizes, still watching Vidcund from across the room.

 _Morning - Three Hours Later_

Vidcund is working alone in the basement, trying his best to modify the control center for the headsets. Pascal storms down the stairs and races over, stopping in front of his younger brother. "Vidcund, we need to talk," Pascal states suddenly, seriousness filling his voice.

Vidcund continues to work on the bottom of the propped-up machine, screwing in a few more of the pieces, his body resting on a square wheelie board. "Can we talk later?" Vidcund asks, "I'm kind of in the middle of planning how to win a war here," he states, wheeling over to the blueprint on the wall and adding another equation to it. Pascal puts his foot down on top of Vidcund's stomach, stopping him in his tracks. "Hey! What's the deal, Pascal?"

"Well I just wanted to make sure that you're still aware of some things," Pascal firmly responds, letting his brother go.

"Okay, spill," he states, moving back over to the machine and taking out his screwdriver.

Pascal continues to follow him. "You're aware that you're five years older than a lot of the people we are working with," Pascal begins, his eyes focused on him.

"Yes," Vidcund answers, grabbing some more parts, not bothering to stop and wonder where Pascal was going with this.

"And you're aware that you have a child with a married woman," Pascal goes on, giving Vidcund a bit of discomfort.

"Uh-huh," Vidcund replies once more.

Pascal sighs, pacing over to where Vidcund is standing and looking straight down at him, "And you're also aware that our biggest ally – Isabella – was dating our other biggest ally – Ripp – and she's extremely vulnerable right now because she just lost him," he explains, crossing his arms.

Vidcund places down his tools and sighs, sitting up from the board to look at him. "Look, I know you're obviously trying to hint at something, so why don't you just come out and say it?" he asks.

"Okay," Pascal says, taking the bait, "You're going to ruin this whole thing with your stupid feelings!"

Vidcund scrunches his forehead, puzzled, "What?"

"I know you that you like her, Vid," Pascal tells him, "But don't screw this up for us!"

"I don't know why you think I like her, but don't worry, you have nothing to fret about," Vidcund reasons, "These hypothetical 'feelings' that you speak of won't get in the way of anything we have planned."

Pascal steps forward, his facial expression showing that he was majorly unconvinced. "Now come on, Vidcund, you know I don't buy that for a second. It's _obvious_ that you like her!"

Vidcund sighs, not budging, "Pascal, you know better than anyone that Isabella is not my type – _Circe_ is my type. Liking Isabella wouldn't make any sense. The two of them are polar opposites of each other," he informs him.

"Exactly!" Pascal exclaims, "And that's why you like her, because she's the exact opposite of what you were used to before," he reasons, "Circe broke your heart, so you went after the one person that you knew experienced what you were going through. The one person that would be the least likely to break your heart!" Pascal explains, throwing his hands out enthusiastically in front of him, "Face it, Vid, you're rebounding! Using Isabella as a rebound to get over the fact that Circe dumped you."

Vidcund sets his tools down and stands up, his facial expression firm. "No, I'm not," he claims.

"Yes, you are," Pascal counters, "This is scientific fact."

Vidcund sighs and rolls his eyes, heading up the stairs. Seeing this, Pascal quickly races after him. "Hey! Don't walk away from me!" Pascal exclaims, "It's a scientific fact that we need to talk this out!"


	4. Chapter 4: Fearful Ventures

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Four_

"Well, I'm glad you're talking to me again," Pascal states, as he makes his way down the hall with his brother. Vidcund nods; his hands in his pockets. Outside the sun is preparing to rise for the day, as perhaps the biggest twenty-four hours of their lives is upon them.

Pascal and Vidcund continue walking down the hall, checking everything over one last time before embarking on the mission; starting phase four of the plan. "Hey Vid," Pascal speaks up, gazing down briefly at the clipboard that is in his hands, "Breanna told me that she resurrected all of the townies last night. Would you like to see them before we go?"

"Sure," Vidcund replies, heading towards the back room of the house, "But it's been a few years since I've been in office, they probably won't even remember me."

Pascal and Vidcund walk through the double doors, the pair pushing the doors open with their hands. They step in the room the auditorium-sized room, watching as hundreds of townies turn and look at them. The brothers step back, feeling rather self-conscious.

"Hey, it's Vidcund!" one of the townies calls out. All of the townies stop and look at where the other townie is pointing. They throw their hands up in the air, all of them erupting into applause.

Pascal smiles, nudging Vidcund softly in the side. "You were saying?"

Vidcund stands stone cold in silence, shocked and seemingly overwhelmed by all of this welcoming attention. He gives a sincere smile and slowly raises up his hand, waving shyly to the crowd.

The rest of the team gathers and walks over to them, focused on the task at hand. "Hey Vidcund," Tank greets from his place between Kea and Isabella, "Is it okay if we go over the plan again really quick? We leave in an hour, and I just want to make sure that we're as prepared as we possibly can be."

Vidcund nods, sincerity filling his voice. "Yeah, of course."

The group follows Vidcund up the stairs and into the living room, stopping in front of the blueprint wall. "Alright," Vidcund begins, bringing his hands together, "As Tank already said, we leave in an hour, so here's how things are going to go," he states, taking a breather, "The six of us – Tank, Isabella, Kea, Pascal, Lazlo, and myself – will head to the gates of Slavestown and enter into the city. We'll then split off into three separate groups and begin our parts of the mission. Meanwhile, Brent and Breanna will stay at the safe house and will continue to resurrect sims and try to convince them to join the army," Brent and Breanna nod, "Then, once our leader gives the signal over headset, you will round up everyone and meet us at the border."

"Now for our separate missions," Vidcund speaks once more, "While Brent and Breanna are resurrecting everyone, Tank, you will be in charge of rounding up every citizen in the city who wants to fight with us and wreaking havoc in any way you can. Remember, we need lots of distractions for Loki's troops, so that we can cut off their communication with Loki easier," Tank nods, "While you're doing that, my brothers and I will travel to our old estate and gather things up for the battle. We also need to fix the electricity for our side of the city. That'll activate our back-up defense system, just in case we may need it. Then the three of us will travel to Loki's estate and purposely get captured so that Kea and Isabella can enter into the estate without any problems," he explains, "Then, you guys will infiltrate the estate from the inside, cutting off Beaker's defense system and cutting off his contact with his troops," Kea nods, but Isabella is gazing down at the floor, her mind appearing to be elsewhere. "More importantly, you two will also be in charge of finding my daughter and Ripp, and getting the two of them out of there," he informs them.

"Question!" Pascal states, raising his hand in the air.

"Yes?" Vidcund answers.

He puts his hand down before asking, "What if they run into Circe?"

"Well, that may be a bit complicated, because we're not exactly sure what Circe is going to be like. She did help us briefly, but now that she has been captured and faced the consequences from Loki, she may not be as willing to help us a second time," Vidcund says, turning towards Kea and Isabella, "Use your best judgment. Right now, if you run into Circe, try to get her out of the estate. – She's still a victim, after all. But be mindful that there's still a chance you might have to fight her," he sighs, turning towards the blueprint, "And we're going to need our best sim to take her down."

Kea raises her hand. "I can take down Circe."

"While you're pregnant?!" Tank speaks up from the group, "Kea, are you sure?"

"Of course," Kea says, her face beaming, "It's time they see what a townie can do and face Kea 'The Lightning' Kalson! Plus, I can always count on Isabella to help me. If all else fails, we can take her out together! Right Izzy?" Kea asks, turning towards her friend, who is still looking down at the ground. Isabella nods, not saying a word. "Great!" she exclaims, giving a fist pump.

"Alright, so we'll leave in forty-five," Vidcund says, watching as everyone nods and goes their separate ways to prepare. Vidcund looks at Isabella, who is still standing stationary at the side of the room, her eyes to the floor. He walks over to her, stopping in front his friend.

"Hey, I need to tell you something," Vidcund informs her, his voice gentle, "Can we talk?"

Isabella nods, briefly making eye contact with him. Vidcund nods back, giving a slight smile. "Okay, let's go," he states, grabbing her by the hand and leading her up the stairs.

 _Fifteen Minutes Later: In the Guest Room_

Tank and Kea are packing up their things for the big mission. Actually, only Kea is packing up her things and Tank is sitting down on the bed watching her. "Hey, here's an idea," Tank begins, watching as Kea packs her bright pink binoculars, "Instead of potentially dying, we flee this place and the ten of us start a new life in Veronaville," he suggests, "It'll be great and Loki-free, what more could we ask for?"

Kea does a nose laugh, "Veronaville is nice, but it's not our home."

"Kea, you haven't even been to Strangetown for more than a few hours!" Tank states, shaking nervously, "The city's not that great, trust me, we'd be better off."

Kea sighs, putting down the item in her hands and sitting down on the bed next to him. "Tank, what's wrong? You were so set to go on the mission a few minutes ago," she reminds him.

Tank sighs, "I know, but then I got to thinking while we were down there that this might be the last time that we'll ever be together and…I got scared," he confesses, his eyes trailing to the floor, "I mean, what if I lose you again? And now with you pregnant, I just don't want you to go on the mission."

"Oh," Kea replies, "So that's it…"

"And now it's hit me that I'm either going to lose you or the baby – or even worse, both – because I can't have it all!" Tank exclaims, covering his face with his hands.

Kea tilts her head, "Why not? Why can't you have it all?" she wonders.

"Because I'm me, Kea!" Tank states, throwing his hands up, "My whole life consists of me never catching a break. Every time I get something good in my life, I can never keep it," he confesses, "I mean, how long did it take for Loki to sentence you to death after we got engaged?"

"Well-" Kea begins.

"-And before that, how long was it before your ex-boyfriend showed up and turned me in?" Tank asks again.

"Tank-" Kea states.

"And look at this," Tank interrupts once more, "Two days into this mission and I've already lost my brother!"

"You haven't lost anything yet," Kea defends.

"Kea, this is Loki we're talking about," Tank attempts to reason; he sighs, "I'd be _shocked_ if Ripp's not dead by now."

Kea gets up and gently grabs Tank by the shoulders, leaning down towards him so that she can gaze into his eyes. "Tank, listen to me," she says firmly, "You are not going to lose me!"

"And why's that?" he asks.

"Because this is us, Tank!" she exclaims, "This is me and you and Izzy and those other people whose names I can't remember. And Loki's never been up against us before, and he has no idea what he's in for!" she assures him.

"Kea," Tank begins, not breaking the seriousness of the situation, "You don't know what you're talking about. This isn't just another sim! Loki took over the entire neighborhood for goodness sake and he didn't even bat an eye!" he argues, "He cut off the whole neighborhood's contact with the outside world! He got rid of anyone who he even thought for a second had the chance to rise against him! He's too powerful!" Tank exclaims, his eyes trailing to the floor, "It's hopeless."

Kea gets up and exhales, before pacing around the room in front of him. "So it's hopeless," she repeats, "Please!" she huffs, brushing it off with her hand, "I've been up against many Lokis in my life and let me tell you they are all the same: entitled individuals that underestimate the power of the people and make too many mistakes in their planning," she comments, turning back towards Tank, "Now Tank, you know I love you, but you are letting Loki get into your head. You're letting his scare tactics work on you," she explains, "Deep down, he's probably no scarier than Lyndsey."

Tank looks up, not cracking a laugh. "Maybe, but I still don't want to lose you."

Kea sighs and sits down on the bed next to him, placing her hand gently on top of his. "Tank, I appreciate your concern, but you and I both know that you guys won't last five minutes without me," she says, stopping to think this over, "Well, maybe not five, but after fifteen you'd be wishing that I was there," she states, Tank smiles slightly, "Tank, I know you don't want me to go, but what kind of lesson would we be teaching our son if we abandoned our home and our friends and family and just ran away from the problem?"

Tank looks up, his eyes widening, "Son?"

Kea nods, "Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's a boy," she states, wrapping her arm around him and pulling him close to her; the pair sitting in silence for a bit. "And believe me, Loki has reason to be scared, too. Everyone that's fighting for us has incentive. Plus, we have you," she says, thinking this over more thoroughly for a moment before smiling with a nod, "We have you," she firmly reiterates.

Tank pulls back, gazing at Kea, tears forming in his eyes as he moves forward and wraps her in a compassionate brace. He leans forward and kisses the side of her face.

This was exactly what he needed to hear.

 _Meanwhile: In the Upstairs Bedroom_

Vidcund pulls Isabella into the upstairs bedroom and shuts the door, letting go of her hand. Isabella pulls back a bit, rubbing her wrist with her hand, a sad expression still spread across her face. "Hey, are you okay?" Vidcund asks, "You seem kind of down lately."

"It's nothing," Isabella states with a sigh, plopping down on the guest bed, "It's just – I don't know, I'm beginning to think I'm not cut out for this mission."

"Why would you say that?" Vidcund asks, taking a seat down next to her, his eyes filled with wonder.

"Well, every one of you guys are so talented," Isabella explains, "I mean, you're all so fit and smart and innovative," she continues, "And after seeing how much I struggled yesterday just to swim a few feet and complete a simple task – I feel like I can't contribute anything of value to the group," she confesses, "I'm just – average."

"Ah," Vidcund sounds, throwing his head back a bit and bringing his hands together in thought. "You know Izzy, I always thought average sims were the best because without them, the whole city wouldn't work. But I think you're confusing the word 'average' with the word 'useless' – which is something I believe no sim can be," Vidcund explains, gazing into her eyes. "Which makes this the perfect time to tell you what I was originally going to tell you," Vidcund says, standing up from off the bed, "You see, there's one large part of the plan that I didn't tell anyone about yet," he explains as Isabella watches him pace around the room, her face filled with confusion, "You see, we're taking back the city today, and _you're_ our secret weapon. You will lead the Strangetown Army, Isabella. You will lead the rebellion," he announces, certainty in his voice.

"What?!" Isabella exclaims, sitting up from her seat and moving towards him, her arms extended, "You can't be serious! I'm just an ordinary sim!" she reasons, "You heard me earlier, I'm average!"

"Exactly! And that's why you're the most dangerous of them all," Vidcund claims, "Average sims make the best leaders and the best fighters, because you don't know what they're going to do. They're crusaders for the common sim!" Vidcund watches as Isabella turns away, seemingly unconvinced. "Isabella, you've done countless acts against Loki, and he's done nothing but overlook you. You saved my brothers and I, you hid Kea, you rounded up an army to take him down, and up until a few days ago, he didn't even know it. You're more than just brave, you're fearless, and you will lead the army," Vidcund states, pulling the main headset out from behind his back and holding it out to Isabella. She backs away from it, clearly scared.

"But what about Tank?" she asks, looking up at him.

Vidcund shakes his hand, "Tank is just a cover-up," he confesses, "A distraction so that Loki doesn't catch on to the real thing. Why else do you think we made that public announcement?" he asks.

Isabella gazes down, still unsure of herself as she looks back up at Vidcund once more. "But why can't you lead us?" she wonders.

"Putting me in charge would be too obvious," Vidcund explains, still holding the leader headset out to her, "Loki would see it coming from a mile away."

Isabella stands in silence, her stature still filled with uncertainty. "Isabella, look at me," he states, placing his hands on her shoulders and staring intently at her; Isabella's eyes shining with worry, "I need you to do this for us," he pleads, "You're the only one I can trust with this task."

Isabella sighs and gazes down at the headset once more. She slowly reaches out for it, almost grasping it, before pulling her hand back and turning away from Vidcund.

"I can't-" she speaks, lowering her head to the ground.

"Why not?"

"Why not?" Isabella repeats, before turning back towards him, tears in her eyes, "Just look at me! Look at me and tell me I can lead a revolution!" Isabella exclaims, her voice filled with doubt. "Vidcund, you're an intelligent guy, so you should be able to clearly see that I'm not super smart or super strong or super crafty – I'm just a dud," she explains, looking down at the carpet, "I'm just a dud," she repeats, sounding like she actually believes it.

"You're a dud, _you_?" Vidcund repeats, stepping towards his friend, "I'm sorry, but have you completely forgotten what happened the past six years?" he asks, gazing at her. "You're Isabella eXtreme," he states, "And in the past six years you have helped your friend break the townie cycle, re-established hope in your ex-boyfriend's life, helped five of your friends completely change their lives around, and brought all of these people together!" Vidcund explains, "You shaped this rebellion Isabella, and you did it with the one thing that Loki doesn't have the balls to understand – you did it with kindness. You did it by being yourself – your average, ordinary sim self," he states, giving a small grin, completely unaware that the rest of the team is listening in the doorway.

"You know, Loki spent three years trying to shape the perfect army, and his doesn't even come close to the one that you have. Yours is better because you have a crowd of people – friends, nonetheless - that are willing to die for what they believe in, and they trust you and they all have your back because they know that you have theirs," Vidcund states, nodding in approval, "And that's why I need you to lead us Isabella, because you're the only one that gets it. The only one out here that deserves to serve that position. You're the only one out here that all of us trust," he informs her, stepping towards her once more.

Isabella sighs, continuing to ponder this one over as she looks down at the main headset that Vidcund is holding out to her in his hands.

"Please, Isabella," Vidcund pleads, "We need you."

Isabella steps back, looking to the others who have just entered the room. She extends her hand out towards the black headset as all of her friends begin to surround her. Isabella gazes at each of them individually, all of them sporting a smile and giving a nod, before stopping at Brent who is nodding and smiling the largest. Isabella grins, looking back up at Vidcund and taking the leader headset in her hand.

"Well, if you guys need me," she states, "Then I guess I have no choice!" she says, holding up the headset up in the air.

"Whoo! Peer pressure!" Kea cheers, throwing her arms up in victory.

Pascal wraps his arms around her and gives her a hug. "You'll do great," he states; Lazlo nods.

"Yes! Go Izzy!" Kea exclaims, cheering once more.

"I'm really proud of you, sis," Brent speaks up, hugging her as well.

Isabella looks to her left, "Tank?" she chimes.

Tank looks over at Isabella and smiles. "You'll kick butt. Hopefully not mine," he adds, his arms crossed. Isabella laughs.

"Thanks guys," she says, placing the headset confidently over her ears; Vidcund giving a proud nod of approval in the background. "Now come on, we have a war to win!"

 _Meanwhile: Outside of the Division Fence_

Crystal is dressed in her gladiator outfit and is sitting crouched behind a mailbox, gazing intently at the barbed wire fence that separates Slavestown from the free area. She scans her surroundings, finding the city unsurprisingly deserted. Crystal races out into the open, stopping in front of the fence. She takes out a pair of pliers and begins to cut into it, making several straight lines and creating flaps of escape in the process.

"Yeah," she says to herself when she steps back from the fence, admiring her work. The flaps were there, but they were barely visible. " _Just trying to make it easier for you,_ " she states, talking to the clouds.

 _An Hour Later:_

Tank, Isabella, Kea, and the Curious brothers are standing in front of the division fence, each of them peering into the city. "There it is…Slavestown," Vidcund announces, gazing down at the landscape before turning back to his teammates, gesturing them into a huddle. "Alright, so does everyone know the plan?" he asks them. Everyone nods, except Kea who looks slightly confused.

"Don't die?" she states. Vidcund turns to Isabella, a bit concerned.

"Don't worry, she's got it," Isabella reassures him, looking to Kea who is crouched down on the sand petting a rock, "Or er- _I_ got it," Isabella corrects herself.

Vidcund nods, satisfied with her answer, "Alright then, we're off."

Everyone exchanges glances with each other, giving a nod before turning back towards the fence, preparing to enter the city. Vidcund sighs and steps forward, determination filling his body as he climbs up and over the division fence, Pascal and Lazlo following close behind. He stops halfway on the other side, helping Isabella up as Tank and Kea cross over the fence a few feet away.

"Good luck," Vidcund states after everyone has made it safely across. They all look to each other and nod, before backing up, preparing to go in their separate directions. Tank gives a small salute before turning around and racing into the residential area of the city. Pascal, Vidcund, and Lazlo give a brief gesture of acknowledgement before turning around and racing towards their residence.

"You ready to go Izzy?" Kea asks, nudging her best friend in the side as Isabella stands there, cautiously watching her teammates and friends.

Isabella nods, shaking herself out of it. "Of course," she states, "Let's go."

She watches as Vidcund turns around, the pair looking deeply back at each other one last time before turning around and racing forward to catch up with their given groups.

Isabella sighs, an unwanted feeling aching in the pit of her stomach, scared of what is to come.


	5. Chapter 5: Wannabe

Up until I wrote _Survivor_ , this was the strangest thing I had ever written. I hope you enjoy my favorite chapter of the series!

* * *

 **Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Five_

The three Curious brothers – Pascal, Vidcund, and Lazlo – are running down the Road to Nowhere, heading straight towards their previous residence. "Alright," Pascal speaks suddenly, clearly out of breath, "Whose genius idea was it to put our house on a hill?' he asks.

"Vid's," Lazlo answers, trying to keep up with Vidcund, who is already halfway up it, "He thought it would discourage solicitors from visiting," he states.

Pascal groans and races forward, attempting to pass him, "You just had to go for the house with the view, didn't you?"

"Less talk, more walk," Vidcund instructs his brothers, "Come on guys, we're almost there!" Vidcund gasps, halting when he spies three tombstones jutting out of the sand in front of him. "Oh lovely," he says, getting a closer look at the engravings.

Pascal and Lazlo catch up to him, stopping to look at the stones as well. Lazlo pulls his glasses down, examining the tombstones more carefully, his eyes widening when he realizes who they are intended for. "Yeow!" he remarks, gazing down at the three tombstones that are lined up side by side, "I always thought I would never be alive to see my own tombstone," he comments. Pascal crounches down in front of the stones, reading them over a second time.

"Well, that's creepy," Pascal notes, pointing to the tombstone that is situated to the left of the others, "But look! Loki called me a scientist!" he exclaims, pointing to the engraving that is on his stone, under the name 'Pascal Curious.'

Vidcund crosses his arms, raising an eyebrow at his eldest brother. "Pascal, the engraving says, 'Worst scientist in the world,'" he informs him.

"I know! But the career implications are still there!" Pascal says with a smile. Vidcund rolls his eyes.

"Hey, at least you got more than 'guy'," Lazlo counters, pointing at his tombstone which reads: 'Lazlo Curious – Guy.'

"Well, at least he got the right gender," Vidcund flatly states, turning away from his tombstone which reads: Vidcund 'Shit-Bag' Curious – The Worst Sim to Ever Walk the Earth.

"Aww! Look at that, he likes you!" Pascal proclaims, taking out a camera and snapping a photo of Vidcund's tombstone, "And I thought this was going to be a bad trip!"

Lazlo turns to Vidcund, a strange rather perplexed look spread across his face.

"Yeah...we should probably go," Vidcund says, hoping that he is reading his younger brother's signals correctly. The three race onto their lot, finding it destroyed, smelly, and surrounded by caution tape.

"Man, I love what they've done to the place," Pascal states sarcastically, his hands on his hips. Lazlo eeps as one of the solar panels falls off of the roof, barely missing him. A bunch of rats race out from underneath the infrastructure.

Behind him, Vidcund shoves his hand into the sand and yanks out the hose, holding it by the nozzle. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out goggles, replacing his glasses with them. Vidcund walks over to the entrance, pulls the wooden plank off of their boarded up house, and holds up the hose as he swiftly walks inside; Pascal and Lazlo following close behind him. He steps into the residence, putting his foot down on the black tiled floor.

"GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HOUSE!" Vidcund shouts, releasing the handle, jet-streams of water spraying out of the hose. Vidcund walks around, spraying the entire floor down, hundreds of rats racing out the door and off the premises. Vidcund paces over to the wall and opens up the glass case, punching several of the buttons. The battery-operated cleaning system turns on.

Vidcund turns off the hose and throws it down, all three of the Curious brothers racing to their separate corners to retrieve items for the mission. "We don't have much time," Vidcund warns them, setting a collection of tools down on the center of the kitchen floor, before running around and collecting all of the extension cords, "We need to get the power back on!"

Pascal and Lazlo nod, each racing over to the pile of tools and grabbing what they need. Vidcund moves over to the green house, brushing the dead Africa violets out of the way with his foot. He ducks in front of the planter, staring up at the Slacker career reward that he had invented a few short years ago. Vidcund smiles to himself as he pulls each of the shelves up, exposing the outlets underneath them. "Like this is actually useless," he states, plugging in the extension cords. The lights in the house power on.

"Sweet!" Lazlo exclaims, before racing over to the living room and pulling out the floorboard. He takes out a wrench and begins to work on fixing the mainframe; Vidcund goes over and joins him.

"Hey! Check it out!" Pascal says, holding up a picture frame and showing to his brothers, "Loki didn't throw out my picture of the Sexy Periodic Table!"

Vidcund shakes his head, continuing to fix the mainframe, "That picture is wrong on so many levels."

"Don't you mean on so many _elements_?" Pascal puns. Both of his brothers look up from their work and glare at him. Pascal shifts his eyes from side to side, "What?" he says.

Lazlo screws in the last piece of the device. "Yes!" he exclaims as the mainframe reactivates itself, making its signature start-up noise and lighting up the room. Pascal walks over to the window, happily watching as all of the lights power on in the city. Lazlo smiles.

"Ah, it's good to be back!" Vidcund states, standing in the center of their living room; hands on his hips. He presses the button on the side of his headset and speaks into it. "Phase five of the mission is officially complete: The power is back on," he announces carefully, "We will now begin phase six – Operation Capture," Vidcund says, turning to his brothers as he releases the button. "We're going in!" he exclaims.

 _Fifteen Minutes Later_

Pascal, Vidcund, and Lazlo are running down the Road to Nowhere for the second time that day, this time in the opposite direction. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Pascal asks, falling behind Vidcund in an attempt to keep up with him once more, "Once we get into the Beaker estate, we may not be able to get out," he reasons.

Vidcund rolls his eyes, "Please, this is Beaker we're talking about. This is the guy who gets distracted by blue feathers," he reminds them as the trio races towards the target in question. They stop in front of the estate and look at one another, unsure of what to do next.

"Alright, so we need to create some kind of distraction that's so annoying that Loki will have no choice but to drop everything and capture us," Vidcund tells him, "So, does anyone have any ideas?" he asks. Vidcund turns to Lazlo; he shrugs. Pascal steps forward, standing triumphantly as the beams from the sun shine down on him, creating a majestic glow.

Pascal smiles, "Gentlemen...my time has come!"

 _Meanwhile: Inside the Beaker Estate_

"Well, it's nearly noon and there's been no sign of anything even remotely suspicious," Loki states, stepping down from his gigantic indoor telescope. He turns to Ripp, who is sleeping in his chair; Loki nudges him awake.

"Wha-?" Ripp abruptly speaks. He looks up, finding Loki glaring at him. "Oh, sorry. You were saying?"

Loki walks over to him, stopping in front of Ripp and leaning down towards him. "I was saying that the city has been silent - which is a real shock, considering neighborhood wars have always been known for having surprise attacks. Knowing Vidcund he's probably planning some elaborative fifty-three step plan to try and sneak around me," Loki rambles, pacing back towards the open window, "Something he deems as 'smart' and 'sophisticated,'" he continues, stopping in front of the telescope, "Something that no one would ever see coming in a million years-"

All of a sudden, the ground starts shaking, as music blasts from outside the residence. "What the hell-?" Loki declares, scanning the room, looking for the source of the noise; Ripp appearing just as confused nearby. Loki races over to the telescope and gazes through it, seeing Pascal, Vidcund, and Lazlo dancing terribly on their front lawn. "Circe!" Loki shouts at the top of his lungs, "For the love of all things that are evil - don't look out the window!" he screams.

Next to him, Ripp is smirking. "Well, you were right about the last one," he states. Loki walks over to the window and glares outside at his greatest nemeses; his arms crossed.

Pascal steps forward, wearing a backwards cap, black sunglasses, and loads of bling. He holds a microphone up to his face, swaying his body with the beat of the music. _"Yo, I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want."_

Vidcund stands next to him, answering the call with another microphone. _"So tell me what you want, what you really, really want,"_ he sings.

Pascal sings back, gesturing at his sides as he hops in place, _"I wanna – I wanna – I wanna – I wanna – I wanna really, really, really wanna take you down."_

Isabella and Kea are standing behind the side of the house, watching this whole display unfold. Isabella looks to Kea who is busy dancing to the beat; she raises her eyebrow at Kea. "What? It's catchy!" Kea defends in a whisper.

Lazlo dances forward, moving in front as he sings towards the house. _"Oh Loki Beaker, you're really bad,"_ he continues, singing into his microphone, _"You took the city and made things sad."_

Vidcund moves up, _"You're such a sleaze ball, you know it's true. Give it back to us before we're done with you,"_ Vidcund leans forward, moving with attitude, _"I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want,"_ Vidcund backs up waving his hand, gesturing for Isabella and Kea to go into the residence. Isabella sees this and nods, exiting into the castle.

" _So tell me what you want, what you really, really want,"_ Lazlo answers.

" _I wanna – I wanna – I wanna – I wanna – I wanna_ _really, really, really wanna taken you down,"_ Vidcund sings, pointing at Loki and moving his thumb towards the ground.

All three of the Curious brothers line up in a row and start dancing horribly in unison. _"If you wanna win this war, you gotta be someone else,"_ Pascal and Vidcund sing together.

" _Gotta be someone else,"_ Lazlo choruses in the background.

Vidcund steps forward, twisting his body in a sway, _"Come up with better ideas, cause yours really suck."_

" _If you wanna win this war,"_ Pascal sings next, _"You better give up."_

" _-Cause you failed to kill us, and now you're out of luck,"_ Lazlo completes, moving back to allow Pascal to solo in front.

Pascal walks forward, waving his free hand in the air as he continues to sing. _"So here's what happened from A to Z – You beat us up and dug our own graves. Sentenced us to death, but then we got out. You destroyed our house and then you – Kidnapped Ripp, who didn't do anything. What a jerky move –"_

" _And what's next? Oh, you'll see,"_ Vidcund transitions smoothly.

" _Everybody run cause Loki's coming down,"_ Lazlo sings.

They all move forward and gesture repeatedly towards the sand. _"Everybody run cause the weirdo's coming down,"_ they sing.

The bass line continues to pound into the ground as the brother's dance in unison. _"If you wanna win this war…"_ they complete, their voices echoing throughout the city. The three of them stop and pose, holding their microphones out in front of them. All at once, they drop them, the impact making a terribly deafening, blaring sound. Everyone minus the Curious brothers covers their ears.

The music ends, flashing five minutes later to Pascal, Vidcund, and Lazlo, all of who are tied up in chairs on the first floor of the Beaker estate. Pascal looks to his brothers, beaming, "I'm not gonna lie guys, but that was definitely one of the top five best moments of my life."

"After seeing your life so far, I am not surprised," Loki grumbles, as he finishes tying the knot on the back of Pascal's chair.

"Zing!" Lazlo rings in point.

Loki steps back, having finished all of the rope tying, and towers over them. He stops to gaze at each of the Curious brothers individually – giving them a mere once over – before moving to the center of the room, his hands on his hips.

"Unbelievable!" he chimes, "Three self-proclaimed 'super-geniuses' and you come in pulling a silly stunt like that!"

"Well, I'd like to think there's a little Goopy Gilscarbo in all of us," Pascal comments, still smiling wide.

"Quiet you!" Loki commands, hoping to silence him. He walks to the left, pointing his finger at each of them as he passes by, chiming out his opinions. "Now let's see, I don't like you," Loki says, passing by Pascal, "I _really_ don't like you," he continues, pointing at Vidcund. He stops in front of Lazlo, pulling his finger back to ponder this one over for a moment. "You, eh, I could go either way."

Lazlo nods, "That's fair," he states as Loki waves it off, turning his back to them.

Pascal leans towards his youngest brother, whispering enthusiastically, "He _likes_ you!" Pascal suggestively moves his eyebrows up and down.

Loki swiftly turns around, smirking at the Curious brothers, "Now that I have you all under my control, it's time to drill your minds for every piece of useful information. And trust me, with Pascal here, it's not going to take long," Loki notes, glaring at his eldest inferior. Loki turns his body and redirects all of his attention to the man that is situated in the center of the room. "But first, tell me Vidcund," he begins, walking towards him, "Tell me how you managed to escape death after I _killed_ you!" he snarls, slamming his hands down on the arms of Vidcund's chair.

Vidcund looks up at him, clearly unfazed. "Well obviously, you didn't do a very good job."

Loki throws his hands up, undoubtedly pissed off. He points an accusatory finger at him. "You watch your mouth boy, or this time I'll kill you for real!"

"…And the award for best acting goes to…" Vidcund firmly counters, sporting his signature smirk. Loki lets out a frustrated groan. Next to Vidcund, Pascal nods in approval.

" _Nice,_ " he mouths to him; Lazlo nods compellingly.

Loki sighs, regaining his composure a bit before turning to Vidcund, a sinister smile spread across his face. "I bet you think you're pretty smart, Vidcund," Loki cooes, leaning towards him, "But you're not smarter than me, not by a long shot! In just two minutes I could make you lose your mind," Loki claims, staring straight at him. Vidcund looks slightly to the left, unresponsive.

"Vidcund," Loki states, trying to grasp his attention. Vidcund continues to stare away. "Vidcund!" Loki says once more, a little more irritation in his voice. Vidcund doesn't budge. "VIDCUND!" Loki shouts, clearly infuriated.

"What?" Vidcund speaks up, trailing off as he continues to gaze around the room. Pascal and Lazlo are trying to hold back laughs.

"Look at me, damn it!" Loki commands, moving towards him. Vidcund continues staring into space. Loki growls and moves around, circling his torso in an attempt to make eye contact with his wandering rival. " _Err…_ " he snarls.

"Loki?" Circe's voice sounds from the hallway, all three of the captives immediately sit up when they hear her voice. "Loki, where's the charger? I can't keep running on two percent battery," she informs him, her voice drawing nearer.

Loki scans the area in a panic, unsure of what to do. Thinking quickly, he rushes to the closet and grabs two white sheets, throwing them on top of Pascal and Lazlo. The sheets fall over their heads and onto the floor. Loki gives a weak moan, his body almost freezing as he hears Circe's footsteps get closer and closer to the room. He stands in front of Vidcund, attempting to hide him from Circe's view. Unfortunately for Vidcund, that meant that he was now mere inches away from a not-so-flattering part of his rival.

Vidcund cringes, a look of pure horror and disgust on his face as he finds himself at eye level with Loki's derriere. He holds his breath.

"I take that back," Pascal whispers to Lazlo, "Loki clearly likes Vidcund the best."

Circe steps into the room, finding it surprisingly silent. She scans the area, glancing at the two smiling Curious brothers, before looking at Loki suspiciously. She crosses her arms across her chest. "Alright, what did you do?" she asks, raising her eyebrow.

"What do you mean by that?" Loki asks, backing up some more. He opens his palm behind his back and covers Vidcund's mouth with it; trying to keep him quiet.

"Hey Circe, guess what? We're still alive!" Pascal beams, seeing the scientific mastermind turn to him.

Circe widens her eyes before giving an eye roll, "Thanks Pascal, it's not like I could have gathered as much," she snidely remarks. She steps forward, her glare not leaving her husband. Circe narrows her eyes, giving Loki a once-over, "What are you hiding?"

"Nothing," Loki states, trying his best to sound convincing, "I think the charger's in the bottom cabinet," he informs her.

Circe stares him down for a moment before giving a small nod, seemingly satisfied by his answer. "Alright," she states. Pascal and Loki watch as Circe walks over to the cabinet and opens the door; bending over to retrieve it. Loki abruptly turns to Pascal, giving him a glare as Pascal continues to stare at his wife.

Pascal leans back in his seat. "-Sorry," he apologizes, redirecting his attentions to the window.

Circe slowly gets up from off of the ground, holding the charger in her right hand. She waves it in front of her husband, clearly satisfied. "Got it," she announces, getting up from her crouched position, "It's about time, too. Three minutes longer and I would've missed the opener."

Loki forces a smile, feeling Vidcund bite down on his hand. "How about that – ahh-mazing team?" Loki quickly corrects himself, hoping to gloss over this sudden tinge of pain, "Better get going, you wouldn't want to miss any more of it," he recommends, silently pushing her out of the room with his eyes.

Circe smirks, tilting her forehead. "Well, I was about to leave anyway so, I'm out of here," she states, waving off the strange scientists behind her. She exits through the door.

Loki steps back from Vidcund, immediately releasing his hand from his mouth and shaking it off in disgust. At the same time, Vidcund exhales, spitting a few times as he attempts to get that awful taste of Beaker flesh out of his mouth. Vidcund shakes his head, trying to snap himself out of it.

"Man, I really didn't think I was going to make it through that one!" Vidcund exclaims, groaning a few more times as he attempts to once again shake the horrible memory from his mind. Nearby, Loki is washing his hand multiple times. He shuts off the sink and snatches a towel from the top shelf, using it to thoroughly dry off his hands.

"Damn it, Vidcund, you're such a prick!" Loki shouts antagonistically.

"Hey! You think I wanted to bite your hand?" Vidcund exclaims, "It was either that or breathe in your ass-air, and you don't have to be a genius to know that was never going to happen!" he defends.

"Right, of course, what was I thinking?" Loki replies, snarky. "Now, where was I? Oh yes," Loki remembers, walking over to Pascal and throwing his hands down on his armrests, getting up in face. "Tell me Pascal, tell me all your secrets!"

Pascal shrugs, not giving it a second thought. "Well, alright," he states. "Sometimes at night I like to lie on the floor and I think about what it would be like to have no arms and legs and to be drenched in butter-"

"-I meant secrets about the _mission_ ," Loki clarifies, rather irritated. "Tell me everything about the mission, not about your various problems!" he yells, gripping the arms of the wooden chair tighter, his veins popping out.

"Oh okay," Pascal responds, "The important thing to know about the mission is-"

Loki leans forward, "Yes…?" he speaks, eager to hear the rest.

"-It may or may not exist, and also – huh? How about that?" Pascal stops, his eyes wandering around the room, "I forgot the rest of what I was going to say. Funny how that works, isn't it?"

Loki growls, lunging forward and grabbing Pascal by the shoulders, shaking him back and forth. "You stupid dipwad! Give me something I can use or else!" he threatens, shaking him faster.

Pascal gazes up at him, his eyes getting bigger. "Hold me tighter," he chimes.

"Ack!" Loki cringes, quickly releasing him and dusting his hands off on his criminal mastermind outfit, "Pascal, what are you?" he asks, clearly disturbed.

"No one knows for sure," Pascal answers very ghost-like. "I just enjoy making situations uncomfortable. It's a talent really," Pascal completes normally; his two brothers nodding in agreement.

"Unbelievable!" Loki outbursts, turning away from the three of them to look at a mirror that is on the wall; his hands clasped firmly behind his back, "Three months away from you fools and you're still the biggest dinguses the world has ever seen!"

Pascal smiles, "Aww, we missed you, too!" Pascal's voice rings, he turns to Lazlo who has taken his arm out of the rope-hold to look at his watch, "Lazlo!" he whisper growls.

Lazlo gazes down, realizing his error and quickly puts his arm back in the lope, resuming his original tied-up position. "Oh, sorry," he states.

"Well, no matter," Loki continues, swirling back around to face them, "After all this nonsense, I was still successful in my genius endeavors!" he marvels, leaning down towards his main nemesis, stars in his eyes. "You want to know how I did it, Vidcund?" Loki cooes, power in his stance.

Vidcund rolls his eyes, sarcasm filling his voice. "Oh please tell me, because I am _dying_ to know."

"Fierceness, Vidcund dear," Loki speaks up, loving the sound of his own voice. "I did something that takes a man with guts to do! I did the dirty work – and face it boy, there's not a man alive that can take me out!" he declares, looking up to the ceiling.

Vidcund nods, a smirk forming on his face as he turns and exchanges glances with his brothers. "Well, you're right about that," he states.

 _Meanwhile: Infiltrating the Beaker Estate_

Isabella and Kea step into the entrance of the Beaker medieval-style castle, pleased after successfully making it in from the outside. Kea gazes around the first floor and whistles, gazing up at the two story ceiling and elaborative balcony that is towering above them.

"Geez Louise, look at the size of this place!" Kea awes, wandering further into the main hall.

"Yeah," Isabella nods, impressed as well, "Loki must be trying to compensate for something."

Kea leans forward, putting her hand against her mouth to catch her gasp. She immediately cracks up into a fit of laughter. "Whoa, Izzy!" she exclaims, taken off-guard, "Where did that come from?"

Isabella turns around, clearly smiling. "Oh don't act so surprised, I lived with the Curious brothers for two months," she reminds her, matter-of-factly.

The pair steps further into the hallway, carefully scanning the area as they make their way into the greater depths of the castle.

Isabella steps forward and peers into a nearby room, which is filled with numerous inventions. She looks both ways before slowly stepping into it, trying her best to keep the noise down. Isabella lowers her voice, gesturing her best friend in. "Kea, the coast is clear," she whispers, tiptoeing towards the other side of the room, which has a gigantic metallic piece of machinery jutting out of the side of the wall.

"Sweet!" Kea replies as she drops down from the ceiling, holding a flashlight in her mouth.

Isabella walks over to her, clearly confused. "How did you get up there?" she asks, "I thought you were walking behind me." She states, struggling to understand the physics behind it.

Kea shrugs her shoulders, "Hey, don't ask me how this story works," she comments, "Besides, this entry is way cooler."

Isabella smiles, gazing up at her. She gives a nod of approval. "Well, I can't argue with that," she says, walking over to Kea to help her unhook her harness.

Kea removes the flashlight from her mouth and steps around the room, scanning the area for any strange or unknown objects. Isabella goes back to the metallic machine in the corner. Kea stops halfway across the room, eyeing a filing cabinet that is covered with mountains of papers. She begins shuffling through them.

"Man, Loki sure has a lot of useless crap," Kea comments, turning over the papers and glancing at them, "I mean, why does he need twenty-seven diagrams of the same thing?" she wonders.

Isabella shrugs, continuing to gaze at the machine, trying to figure out what it does. "Who knows?" she states, "He was probably just trying to invent something," Isabella replies, stopping when she notices the words 'A.V. Security' printed on the side of the machine. "Hey, I think I found the security system," Isabella whispers to Kea, her hand brushing against the back of it. She turns to Kea, who is now going through the filing cabinet, looking through every folder in reach. "Find anything interesting?" Isabella asks.

Kea shivers, looking down at the open manila folder that is in her hands. Inside of the folder is a photo of Loki wearing a bright red speedo. "Nothing that anyone with sim eyes should ever gaze upon," she notes, sticking her tongue out and cringing in disgust. She closes the folder and throws it over her head, shivering her body a bit, trying to erase that horrible image from her mind.

All of a sudden, two shadows enter the room, the sudden shade above them causing Kea and Isabella to quickly divert their gazes to the figures, freezing in fear. "Hey! You're not supposed to be in here!" one of the alien guards speaks, storming towards Kea and Isabella. "Get out now or you'll leave in pieces!" he warns.

Isabella slowly stands up, stepping back from the machine – holding her hands up in the air. The other alien guard glares down at Kea, "You too, princess," he commands, pointing his weapon right at her. Kea slowly stands up in place, her expression surprisingly calm, though her fierce eyes suggested otherwise.

"Uh oh," Isabella says, focused on her friend.

"I'm sorry," Kea speaks up, stepping forward, "What did you call me? Cause I know you didn't just call me a princess," she concludes, rising her head up in a challenge. "Because it wouldn't be very smart of you to call me that!" she blares.

"You're dead," Isabella softly states, raising her finger up in point.

One of the alien guards steps forward, clearly unfazed by this rather odd outburst. "Listen girly, I don't care how much of a nutcase you are, the point is – you're not allowed here," he storms on, "Now why don't you just move your little townie butt out of this room and go back to the trash hole where you came from!"

"That's it!" Kea snarls, clenching her fists as she races over to them, fire in her eyes. She grabs one of the aliens by the arm, swings him forward, twirls him around by the arm, and throws him onto the other one, knocking them both out of the window in one swift motion.

Isabella walks over to the window, her eyes widened in shock as she looks out of it, gazing at the ground below. "Whoa! Thank goodness the window was open," she says, before thrusting it shut and turning to Kea; Isabella's face still filled with astonishment.

Kea smirks, sassily putting a hand on her hip. "Oh don't act so surprised," she remarks.


	6. Chapter 6: Clueless

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Six_

Tank Grunt is wandering down the Road to Nowhere, searching the street for any potential helpers. Tank walks up to the first house and knocks on the door. He waits for a few moments, before heading to the next house and repeating the same gesture over and over again. After thirty minutes, Tank finds himself alone, feeling rather discouraged.

" _Don't give up, Tank,"_ Isabella's voice rings from the headset, _"Sometimes you just have to wait for people to come to you. Not everyone wants to take that big of a risk."_

Tank sighs and gets up from off the steps, heading towards the Strangetown apartment buildings. He knocks on the first door, where surprisingly someone answers.

"Yes?" Ajay Loner - probably the most normal sim in the city - states, gazing down at the young man, slightly confused. "May I help you…?"

"Yes," Tank quickly answers, shocked that he is actually talking to someone. "I'm rounding up troops for the Strangetown Army to take out Loki, are you interested?" he asks.

Ajay shakes his head, "Nope. See ya!" he says, slamming the door in Tank's face. Tank groans and slowly turns around, only to find himself face to face with none other than-

"Hey only semi-embarrassing son, how's it going?" General Buzz asks, his facial expression moderately pleasant. "I heard you're rounding up troops for the army, and this kind of thing is right up my alley," he comments, nodding in approval, "I get teary eyed just thinking about it," he continues, gazing up at the sky and giving a small sniff. "I'm sure you remembered that, which is why I decided to find you here instead of waiting until you came to our house."

"Yeah," Tank responds, letting this mull over for a bit, trying to hide the fact that he purposely skipped over their house. "I was definitely heading over there…"

"I know," General Buzz calls out, "Cause you'd be stupid not to." Tank's father smiles as he steps to the side, exposing the silver metallic life-sized robot that is standing behind him.

Tank steps back, slightly weirded out by the creature that is staring him down. "Uh, is that your robot?" Tank asks.

General Buzz nods, "Oh yeah, that's Sheba. She's the best," he claims, placing a hand on her cold shoulder, "Strong in spirit – just like me!"

"Uh-huh," Tank states, quickly shifting his gaze between his father and Sheba. "Well, I guess you guys can join the army if you want to…"

"Haha, oh Tank. Don't act like you have another choice!" General Buzz speaks up, "After all, this is the best and only option!"

"Right…" Tank trails off, seemingly unconvinced. "Anyway, you and uh- Sheba," Tank begins staring once again at the Servo, "Should go around the neighborhood and see if you can round up any more troops," he informs them, "I've almost visited every house on this street, I just need to go over to the Smiths-"

General Buzz frantically steps in front of Tank, blocking his path. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! You're not going over there, that is enemy territory!" he exclaims.

"Dad, in this war, we're on the same side!" Tank attempts to reason.

General Buzz grunts, "Yeah, and who told you that? Twinkle Toes Vidcund?" he asks.

Tank scrunches his forehead confused, "What?" he states.

"We're not working with the Smiths and that's final!" General Buzz declares, dramatically waving his arm forward in an end-all position.

Fifteen minutes later, the small group is standing in front of the Smith residence waiting for Pollination Tech #9 to gather his essentials. Tank and Sheba Hugs are standing on the porch while General Buzz waits on the front walkway, grumbling to himself.

"You are fraternizing with the enemy! That man is plotting against us – I know it!" General Buzz warns, crossing his arms in front of his torso.

Jenny kisses Pollination Tech #9 on the cheek as he walks out the door and off the wooden front porch. "Have fun!" she states, wishing them well as she waves goodbye to the rest of the army. Tank and Sheba Hugs wave back.

"Well, now that we have you here, we can continue scouting the area for potential recruits," Tank tells Pollination Tech #9; he nods. Behind them, General Buzz is still grumbling to himself. "But before we do, I should probably ask you guys a few questions, just to make sure that we're on the same page," Tank informs them, as he makes eye contact with General Buzz, Sheba Hugs, and Pollination Tech #9. "So uh, do you three have any combat experience?" he asks.

General Buzz shakes his head at the audacity of this mere question. "Psh, well duh," he replies. Sheba Hugs and Pollination Tech #9 glance at each other briefly before turning back to Tank and shaking their heads.

"Alright, that's okay," Tank assures them, "We'll just be a non-confrontational army. Those always succeed, right?"

"You guys looking for fighters? If so, I'm pretty experienced," a voice rings out behind them. Tank and the others turn around, finding themselves face-to-face with a sim wearing a black gladiator outfit. Tank steps back, slightly terrified.

"And uh, who exactly are you?" Tank asks, pondering whether or not they should trust this person, or call it quits right now.

"More like _what_ exactly are you?" General Buzz mumbles to Sheba, the pair standing behind Tank.

The gladiator tilts their forehead, extending their hand out to them. "I'm just a helpful sim who is good at fighting and wants revenge," they state, grabbing Tank's hand and giving it a snake. "You know, I don't mean to brag, but I once knocked Loki out in one punch," they say, as if they were spewing out their resume.

Tank turns to the others, exchanging gazes with them before looking back up at the strange masked sim, clearly impressed. "Well, if you're half as good as you say you are, we'd be foolish not to let you join," he states, shaking their hand again. "By the way I'm-"

"-Tank, Pollination Tech #9, Sheba Hugs, and Buzz," the masked sim completes, pointing their finger at each of them as they do so. "Yeah, I know," the gladiator finishes, "I'm a resident, not an outsider. Now come on people, let's do some butt-kicking!"

The group looks to one another once more, before Tank gives a shrug. "Uh, okay," he agrees. The group heads down the Road to Nowhere, scanning the area for any and all suspicious activity. General Buzz speeds up and walks forward, nudging his son in the side.

"Look son, I know you're trying to do something scrapbook-worthy here," General Buzz speaks up, keeping his voice down to a hissy whisper, "but there is no way that I'm working with this clown!" he whisper-exclaims, pointing his thumb behind him at the elderly alien.

Tank sighs, rolling his eyes as he continues forward, his feet starting to ache a bit from the excessive amount of walking. "Come on dad, the fate of the entire city is at stake," his reminds his father "Can't you just put your petty feud behind you until we save it?" he suggests.

"I can't!" General Buzz outbursts, "I mean, just look at him: Pure evil," General Buzz replies, powerfully emphasizing his final two words.

Tank turns to the left and stares at Pollination Tech #9, who is kneeling down in the center of a field, innocently picking daisies. He picks one up in his hand and sniffs it, giving a delicate sigh. Seeing them, Pollination Tech #9 smiles and gives the father-son pair a friendly wave.

Tank turns back to General Buzz, raising an eyebrow in doubt. " _Pure evil_ ," General Buzzes concludes with a head shake.

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Safe House_

Brent and Breanna are busy at work resurrecting all of the sims that were buried in Olive's garden. Brent sighs, hanging up the Resurrect-O-Nomitron, wiping the sweat from off his forehead. "My gosh, we've been doing this for hours! How many people did she bury in that garden?" he asks, pacing over to take a much needed sip of water.

"Nineteen," Breanna answers him, moving around a few papers on her clipboard. "But don't be discouraged, there's only a few left," she explains, "Of course, that still leaves all of the older Strangetown premades, but there's only about thirty or so of those."

Brent groans, placing his hands on his forehead, "We're going to be here all night, aren't we?" he wonders. Brent trails his hands down his face, a sim across the room catching his eye. The man is tall, elderly, and wearing a black and white classic tuxedo – a pair of spectacles resting on his nose and a sharp black and gray cane in his hands. The man has an Elvis-style haircut, except his hair is solid gray.

"Who is that, Mr. Peanut?" Brent asks, staring at the gentleman.

Breanna looks to the elderly man briefly before riffling through the papers on her clipboard once more. "According to the papers, that's Ichabod Specter. He was the only husband of Olive's to die of old age."

"No wonder," Brent comments, watching as Ichabod reaches into his pocket and pulls out his golden pocket watch; blowing on the cover gently before delicately brushing it off on his pants, "Who could say no to someone that classy? I mean, how could you say no to that face-?" Brent begins, noticing that Breanna is now raising her eyebrow at him, "Metaphorically speaking, of course," he corrects. Breanna 'ah's and nods in agreement.

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Beaker Estate_

Pascal yawns from his tied up position as Loki continues to ramble on and on, bantering back and forth with his younger brother. Pascal turns to Lazlo, a bored exhausted look plastered on both of their faces as Loki continues to speak, a security camera aimed down at the scientists. "And you want to know why you could never be a successful supervillain like me?" Loki challenges Vidcund, leaning up against the cabinet in front of them.

Vidcund raises his eyebrow, "Because I don't have the proper goatee?" he strikes back. Next to him, Pascal breaks into laughter.

"Good one!" he praises.

Loki groans and slaps his face in frustration, swerving away from them for a moment to contain his sanity. Seeing this, Pascal turns to Vidcund, his facial expression snarky. "You know Vidcund, we should go easy on Loki, I mean, he's still a youngin'," he tells him. Loki turns around, placing his hands behind his back and clasping them together. He walks over to Pascal.

"Actually, I just turned thirty," he informs him.

"Ooh, happy birthday!" Pascal responds, seemingly excited by this news.

"Thanks," Loki replies, his tone not matching his apparent gratitude.

Pascal scrunches his forehead, a rather intriguing thought coming to his mind. "So, to be clear," he begins, "This whole 'taking over the world' thing isn't just your way of coping with the fact that you're getting old, is it? And that you haven't accomplished much?" Pascal adds on, "And that your wife had a kid with another man? I mean, I know it's insane that no one wanted to spread those genes around-"

"You really don't need to keep continuing, Pascal," Vidcund interrupts him, awkwardly sitting tied up next to his brother. Loki turns to Pascal, giving him a death glare.

"No," he growls.

"Well okay then, just checking," Pascal clarifies, breathing a sigh of relief. "Man, it feels nice to finally get that out in the open!"

Loki sighs and rolls his eyes, stepping forward once more. He leans down and makes eye contact with Vidcund. "Anyway, now that I've got you all here, it's time to plan your demise - Your _Earl E._ Demise!" he exclaims, laughing evilly at the sky.

The Curious brothers groan.

"I don't know what's worse: the mustache or the terrible attempts at humor," Pascal states to his brothers.

Vidcund turns to Pascal, looking as though his brother has lost his mind. "The mustache, is that even a question?" he asks. Vidcund redirects his attention to Loki, a feeling of determination circling through his entire body. "Threaten all you want Loki, but I'm not afraid of you!"

Loki chuckles a second time, holding his hand out in a claw shape in front of his face. He looks up at the ceiling again. "Please, you guys would run away from me the first chance you get. You guys are cowards – you always have been and you always will be!"

"He's got that right!" Pascal chimes in; Vidcund and Lazlo narrow their eyes at him, "What? He made a valid point!" he defends.

"You know, Loki. You and I aren't that different," Vidcund speaks up, immediately catching his rival's attention as Vidcund calmly continues with his sentence, "-except I'm not a TOTAL PSYCHOPATH!" Vidcund screams, the crazed tone of his voice echoing throughout the estate.

Loki smirks, stomping his foot down mere inches away from Vidcund's foot. "And that's why you'll always be a failure! You're weak, Vidcund. Science must be used for personal gain, otherwise it's a waste of a collection of thoughts and ideas!" Loki declares, eyeing Vidcund's narrowing stare. "Oh don't act so surprised. This is real advice coming from someone who didn't live with their mother until they were twenty!"

Vidcund continues to glare. "Oh don't be mad at me," Loki says, continuing to mock him, "It's not my fault that Circe didn't want to love a man who wet his pants at prom!"

"It's your fault she broke up with me!" Vidcund fires back.

Loki crosses his arms, slowly shaking his head in utmost pity. "Well, if she really liked you, then she wouldn't have broken up with you after the accident!" he claims.

Pascal turns to Vidcund, his argument surprisingly solid. "He does have a point there, Vid."

Vidcund redirects his glare to Pascal. "You stay out of this!" he speaks.

"Well, as much as I would love to continue chatting with you small brains for all eternity. I think it's time we finally go our separate ways," Loki states, heading towards the back counter.

Pascal perks up from his seat, "You're letting us go?"

"No, I'm going to kill you," Loki answers, rinsing out his hands and putting on a fresh pair of pink lab gloves, "I'll go get the death machine," he says, giving a snap in their direction. Loki leaves the room, causing Pascal and Lazlo to turn to Vidcund in a panic.

"Oh, would you look at that? He's going to kill us," Pascal calmly speaks out in the open, soothingly nodding his head up and down. "Wow, Loki's really matured so much in the last five years and – how the hell are we supposed to get out of this?!" Pascal yells, somewhat hysterical, as he turns back to Vidcund; his voice filled with frenzy.

"I don't know," Vidcund responds, his mind racing a mile a minute, "But don't worry, we'll think of something…"

All of a sudden, Circe walks into the room. Pascal and Vidcund intently watch as she walks over to the cabinet and pulls out various vials, clearly entranced by her. Lazlo sighs, shaking his head in pity as his two brothers continue to ogle Circe, just like old times.

"Vid, it's Circe," Pascal whispers next to him, air nudging Vidcund in the hopes of getting his attention. Vidcund raises his eyebrow.

"So?" he replies, his voice also in a whisper.

"So," Pascal clarifies, "Hit on her so we can get out of here!"

Vidcund rolls his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh. "I am _not_ hitting on Circe!" he whisper hisses, "It's been years since we've been in a serious relationship!"

"Come on, we all know you're still doing her – so what's the difference?" he asks, "This could be the deciding factor between life or death! Sweet, peaceful death," Pascal sighs, silently shaking his head.

Vidcund looks down at the ground and sighs, realizing that he has no other choice. "Alright, fine, I'll do it. But you owe me," he informs him. Vidcund sits in silence for a moment, taking in the atmosphere around him as he attempts to collect his thoughts. After a little while he gazes up at Circe, who is busy at work in front of him. He takes a deep breath and exhales, allowing all of the nerves to escape from his body.

"Hey Circe?" Vidcund speaks up, both of his brothers intently watching his every move.

Circe turns around, the sound of his voice intriguing. "Oh hey Vidcund, I didn't see you there," Circe says, still preoccupied with the small electronic device that she is holding in her hands.

Vidcund turns to his brothers, who are both gesturing for him to move along quickly. Vidcund nods and turns his attentions back to Circe. "So uh," Vidcund begins, gazing around the room before locking eyes with Pascal, who is gesturing down at Vidcund's jacket. Vidcund nods and moves his arm up, positioning his backside on the bottom of his sleeve, trying to inch it off his shoulder. "Oh. Would you look at that? My jacket is coming off," he announces, struggling to get it under his shoulder. "Oop! There's one of my broad shoulders!"

Circe stops what she is doing and raises an eyebrow, crossing her arms over her torso. "Vidcund, this is pathetic."

"Pathetically _hot_ ," Vidcund adds, sporting his best sexy smirk as he raises his eyebrows up and down.

"Well, we're dead," Lazlo whispers, turning his head away from Vidcund's monstrous attempt at flirtation. He shakes his head.

Pascal scoots his chair forward, trying to get the young woman's attention. "Come on Circe, Vidcund looks pretty appetizing, doesn't he?" he asks, Vidcund appearing rather disturbed next to him. "I mean, you and I both know that you find my brother sexually appealing."

"Do we?" Circe states, raising an eyebrow.

"We do," Pascal confirms, pushing the back of Vidcund's chair forward with his foot, "So why don't you come and get him? Let yourself go!" Pascal exclaims, giving Vidcund one final push forward – the unbalanced force of the push causing Vidcund to fall backwards – both he and the chair crashing hard onto the floor.

He groans. "I probably deserved that," Vidcund declares, feeling imaginary birds circling above his head as the room starts to spin a bit. Circe goes over to him, crouching down next to the confused man, her hands placed on his knees. Vidcund lifts his head up a tad, the blood rushing to his head. "Circe?" he calls out, wonderingly.

Circe leans down, grabbing the sides of Vidcund's face. She lowers her voice in a whisper. "Just shut up and kiss me, you dork!" she commands, lust filling her eyes.

Vidcund looks to Lazlo, clearly taken off-guard, his look somewhat panicked. "Uh, just give me a second-oomf!" Vidcund squeaks as Circe thrusts herself upon him, straddling him with her legs as she forces her tongue into his mouth. Pascal and Lazlo look on in concern, raising their eyes at this rather daring, yet incredibly awkward, display. Circe continues to make out with him, though Vidcund appears to be surprisingly unresponsive.

Suddenly, Loki walks into the room, carrying a gigantic metallic laser gun in his heads; Pascal and Lazlo's eyes shift to pure horror, Lazlo eyeing Vidcund and Circe who are still making out on the floor. Loki places the laser down on the cabinet and begins riffling through the glass vails on top of the countertop, his back to them, completely oblivious to what is going on behind him. Pascal and Lazlo look to each other, exchanging puzzled and slightly weirded out glances.

"How?" Pascal mouths to Lazlo. His little brother shrugs.

"Clueless much?" he mouths back; Pascal nods, giving a silent chuckle.

Below him, Vidcund is still on the ground, a rather perplexed look on his face as Circe continues to kiss him. Finally sensing Loki's presence, she slowly gets up, wiping her lips off with a gentle swipe of her hand. Circe reaches down and slowly moves Vidcund's chair back up into its original position. She sneaks out of the room.

Vidcund sits in silence, staring off into space, his facial expression almost unreadable. "Huh," he speaks, deep in thought, though feeling surprisingly empty.

At last, Loki turns to them, his facial expression sinister towards his academic rivals. "I can't believe the day is here," Loki announces, eagerly clasping his hands together, "The day I finally kill all three of you and win the rivalry for good!" he exclaims, letting out a small sniff, "I promised myself I wouldn't cry. Now wait here 'til I get the ammo – oh wait, that's right, you guys have no choice!" Loki pretends to remember, throwing his head back in an evil laugh. He exits the room, causing the three Curious brothers to go into yet another serious panic.

"Well, I correct my previous comment, now we're dead for real!" Pascal claims in point.

"Yeah, probably," Vidcund states with a nod. Lazlo shakes his head.

"Don't worry guys, I have a plan," Lazlo tells them, Pascal and Vidcund raise their eyebrows at this news, "Just follow my lead," Lazlo instructs, watching as Loki walks back into the room, carrying a large supply of ammo and a pair of silver scissors in his hands.

Lazlo smirks and looks to his brothers, before turning to Loki. "You know Loki, you're so lucky," Lazlo begins, sporting a smile, "You actually got a chance to live your own life, you didn't have to be stuck with the same two people since the moment you were born!"

"Can it, Curious," Loki states, still trying to get the plastic wrap off the box of ammo.

"No, I mean it," Lazlo continues, "Every day it's the same old crap. I've spent fifteen years in this rivalry. Fifteen years of these two dragging me into this!" Lazlo exclaims, both Pascal and Vidcund tilting their heads in confusion, wondering where exactly he is going with this. Lazlo looks to Pascal and smiles. 'Fight back,' he mouths to him; Pascal nods, catching on.

"Hey! If you didn't want to be a part of it, you could've just said something!" he fake argues back.

"I did! Seventeen times!" Lazlo screams.

Pascal huffs, rolling his eyes up at the ceiling. "Well, you should've been more convincing! At least I actually tried to make your life more exciting! That's way more than anything you've done!" Pascal declares, "I see even after all of your complaints, you still have yet to contribute anything useful to our cause! It's like - 'Ooh, look at me! I'm Lazlo! I don't cause any problems in society!'" Pascal impersonates, scooting his chair towards him; he accidentally knocks over a box of tools behind him. It crashes to the floor.

Loki jumps a mile, dropping his scissors in the process. They land next to Lazlo's feet. "Calm down, you idiots!" Loki fires at them, storming towards Pascal and pushing the box of tools back into place, "You almost made me lose a foot!" he scolds them.

"Why would that be a bad thing? Pirates are cool!" Pascal informs him as Lazlo slides the scissors over to Vidcund with his foot. "Oh man!" Pascal groans, trying to keep Loki distracted and surprisingly succeeding. "Have I ever told you about the time I went to Guadeloupe?" Pascal questions, watching as Vidcund attempts to cut himself free behind Loki, "I was up on the mountains, and the meaning of life just came to me like a dove. And you want to know what it was?" Pascal asks him.

Loki shakes his head, "No, but I know you're just going to wind up telling me anyway, so I may as well hear it," he groans.

"Alright," Pascal nods, seemingly satisfied with Loki's answer, "The meaning of life is-"

Pascal stops short as Vidcund throws his arms forward, striking Loki with the box of ammo. He falls to the floor as Pascal looks down at him, clearly impressed. "Wow Vid, you really have been working out," he states.

Vidcund shakes his head, "Nah, I was just filled with vengeance."

Fifteen minutes later, Loki moans and slowly opens his eyes – finding himself tied to a chair, all three of the Curious brothers gazing down at him with big grins on their faces. "Sorry Beaker," Vidcund speaks up, "But you know what they say – there's only room for three geniuses in this town!"

"That explains why you're still here," Loki rebounds, a sassy grin spread across his face.

"Zing!" Lazlo exclaims, circling his hand up in point. Vidcund turns and glares at him, before the pair heads toward the exit.

Pascal goes to follow them, stopping to plant a sloppy kiss on the side of Loki's face, clearly trying to piss the villain off. "Muah!" he sounds, laughing a little before turning around and enthusiastically racing after his brothers.

Loki sits there dumbfounded.

Pascal, Vidcund, and Lazlo race into the hallway of the medieval-style castle, frantically scanning the area for any signs of an exit. "Found it!" Lazlo announces, pointing to the door located on the right back corner. He races over and swings it open, stopping when he spies a pair of black leather boots tapping angrily in front of him. Lazlo sweat-drops as Circe clears her throat, catching all three of the Curious brothers by surprise.

"Oh uh, hey Circe," Lazlo states, stepping away from the grown woman, who is staring them down. Circe crosses her arms in front of her chest, the walls bare behind her. "How-how are you?" Lazlo stutters, moving back towards his brothers.

Circe gives a nose grunt.

"She's mad – RUN!" Pascal declares as he and Lazlo take off sprinting down the hallway. Circe takes out her paralyzer gun; striking both of them in the back. They topple down in front of Vidcund; passing out on the floor.

Vidcund steps back a little, gaping at what Circe has just done. He gulps and steps back, Circe preying towards him. He slowly puts his hands up, frantically moving them in front of his torso; eyes wide. "Now Circe, you don't want to do this-" he tells her, "You and I are friends!" he pleads.

"Really?" Circe snarls, continuing to roam towards him, "Is that why you're cheating on me with this _tramp_?" she fires, holding up the photo booth pictures of him and Isabella in her hand; Vidcund's stomach churns at the sight of them.

"It's not what it looks like – she's just a friend," Vidcund attempts to inform her. He turns around, finding himself backed into a corner.

"Oh, she's just a friend, is she?" Circe repeats, rage filling the irises in her eyes, "Well soon she won't be anything to anyone. I'll make sure of it," she warns.

Vidcund steps back as far as he can go, feeling his heart rapidly beating in his chest. Thinking quickly, he pushes the button on the side of his headset; his hand shaking as he begins to speak. "Izzy! Izzy!" he shouts into it, "Whatever you do, stay away from-oomph!" Vidcund exclaims, Circe knocking him out cold. Around him, everything fades to black.

Across the estate, Isabella is grabbing the side of her headset, clearly worried. "Vidcund? Vidcund!' Isabella calls out, her voice filled with concern, but the only response she hears is static. "Oh no," she says, taking off her headset. Isabella's gaze drifts to the floor as tears well up in her eyes.


	7. Chapter 7: The Best Fighter

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Seven_

Kea and Isabella are still in the back room of the first floor of the Beaker estate, looking through their files. Isabella remains crouched down on the floor, gripping her headset in her hands, despair filling her face. Seeing her, Kea put down the manilla folder that she is holding and kneels next to her, placing a reassuring hand on her best friend's shoulder.

"Don't worry Izzy, I'm sure they're fine," Kea states, her voice warm and caring, "They're geniuses after all!"

"I know," Isabella replies, giving an uneasy swallow, "I just-I wonder what he was trying to tell me. Who am I supposed to stay away from?" she asks; her gaze wandering to Kea.

Kea shrugs, "Beats me. It's probably best to just play it safe and not trust anyone," she advises.

"Not even you?" Isabella asks.

"Especially not me! That chick is crazy!" Kea chimes, wiggling her fingers out in front of Isabella's face, "WooooOooohh!" she wails. Isabella smiles and lets out a small laugh.

"Alright. Now let's finish these files," she states. Kea nods as they both sit up from the floor and resume their original positions, each opening a new file.

"Hey, would you look at that?" Isabella speaks up, scanning over the folder in her hands, "According to this, Loki hates grapes," she announces, looking up at her friend for a moment, "Not sure why we would ever need to know that but…okay," Isabella completes with a shrug. She closes the folder and plops it down on the floor, reaching over to the filing cabinet on the adjacent wall to obtain another file.

Next to her, Kea carefully opens a letter that is sitting in the center of her folder. The letter is entitled 'Crazy Old Hag's Will.' Intrigued, Kea unfolds the letter and begins to read it over; stopping when she comes to the bottom paragraph. She gently closes it up and discreetly places it in her pocket, not saying a word.

"Well, I finished clearing out this cabinet," Isabella announces, turning back to Kea's side of the room, "Now all we have left to do is-" Isabella ceases for a moment, hearing a faint sound ringing in the background, "Hey, do you hear something?" she asks her. Kea pauses and listens, then shakes her head.

"Nope," she answers, "Unless it's the sound of my stomach growling…"

"No, it's not that," Isabella states, moving to the other side of the room towards the source of the sound. She presses her ear against the wall. "It almost sounds like crying," she comments; the realization hitting her like one of Kea's bacon stackers, "Oh my gosh, the kid!" Isabella chimes, racing over to the door.

Kea walks over to her, head tilted in confusion, "My kid?" she states, "Izzy, it's going to take another eight months until he comes out. And believe me, you don't want to be there for _that._ "

"No, not your kid. Vidcund and Circe's kid!" Isabella responds, "The one Loki threatened to kill. She must be on the other side of this door!" Isabella exclaims, gesturing Kea over to her. "Come on, we need to get her out of here quick before they torture her!"

"Well alright," Kea agrees, moving over to the door and standing next to her friend, "As long as I don't have to change any diapers. I'll be doing plenty of that next year!"

Kea and Isabella look to each other and nod. Isabella gently grabs the doorknob and twists it; Kea slowly grabbing the side of the door as she does so. They both peer into the room. A small crib is nestled in the corner across from them as a few alien guards stand on guard in front of the crying baby.

Kea leans to the side, whispering softly in Isabella's ear, "Follow my lead," she instructs; Isabella nods. The pair slowly gets up as Kea animatedly enters the room, throwing her hands up in the hopes of making her presence know.

She stops nearby the alien guards, wrapping her arms around one of them. "Hey! It's you! It's this guy, this is my guy!" Kea exclaims, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a cheap disposable camera, the alien guards all staring at her strangely, "Get a picture with me and this guy!" Kea instructs Isabella, tossing the camera to her. Isabella catches it and presses the button, setting off the flash.

"AHH! MY CORNEAS!" Kea screams, throwing her hands over her eyes and stumbling around the room as she purposely knocks into things. "Oops!" she proclaims, knocking both sets of curtains off the wall; the rods coming down with them, knocking into the foes and temporarily blocking the guards' vision. "Come on!" Kea whisper-commands to Isabella, quickly reaching into the crib and grabbing the small child. They race out of the room, Isabella locking the door from the inside before slamming the door shut behind them.

Isabella and Kea stop and lean up against the wall, catching their breath. "I can't believe that actually worked," Isabella comments, leaning up against her best friend.

Kea smiles, "And they say you learn all your life skills in college," she states, shaking her head sassily, "Give me a break!"

Isabella grins and laughs, "Well you've certainly mastered your people skills."

Kea nods, holding up the baby that is in her arms, "What do you think, cutie?" she asks. Vanissa gazes wondrously around the room before giving out a small cheery noise. "Aww!" Kea states, pulling the child closer to her; Vanissa hiccups then vomits all over Kea. "Eww!" she reacts, holding the baby an arm's length away from her soiled body.

Isabella sweats, "Uh, we better get her to Jenny," she says, gently grabbing Vanissa from a grossed-out Kea and holding her in her arms.

 _Meanwhile: Circling the Road to Nowhere_

Tank and his three-sim army are walking down the Road to Nowhere, scanning the city for any suspicious activity – though Tank is the only one that is staying on task. Behind him, General Buzz and Sheba Hugs are talking about a heated program that was airing on the Simystery Channel, Pollination Tech #9 is attempting to catch a butterfly with a glass jar, and the gladiator has vanished from sight. Tank stops walking and sighs when he turns around, shaking his head at his troops. He reaches to the side of his headset, pressing down the communication button.

"Izzy, it's Tank," he announces, distress in his voice, "Look, I gathered some troops, but they're not exactly the 'fighter' material that we're looking for," he states.

" _Anyone that's willing to help Strangetown in its time of need is fighter material,"_ Isabella's voice rings on the other end.

Tank sighs, throwing his free arm out in frustration, even though he knows that she cannot see it. "Izzy, you don't understand. The only people that volunteered so far are my dad and his robot and Pollination Tech #9 – and trust me, they do anything _but_ fight," he informs her, "We did have this gladiator woman help us for a little while, but then she wandered off to who knows where," Tank states, his voice trailing off a bit as he tells her this.

" _Tank! No wonder you're having trouble! It sounds like you haven't even asked the best fighter in the neighborhood yet!"_ Isabella exclaims, her voice sounding somewhat surprised by this news.

Tank scrunches his forehead, clearly puzzled, "Who's that?" he asks.

A few minutes later Tank is standing in front of a large fighting dojo, the white bricked building standing mightily in front of him. Tank steps forward and knocks on the door. Gramma, Isabella's grandmother, answers it; her face lights up when she sees him.

"Tank! I didn't know you were still around," Gramma chimes, pulling him into a hug, "It's good to see you."

"Thanks," Tank nods, carefully looking down at the name that he was written down on a card. "The reason why I'm here is because I'm recruiting people to join my army to take back the city," he informs her, "And I was told that the best fighter in Strangetown is at this dojo. So, do you know anyone by the name of Annabelle?" he asks.

Gramma eXtreme smiles, gently clasping her hands together, "Why yes," she says with a delicate smile, "And you're looking at her."

Tank steps back, eyeing the grandmother strangely. "Wait, _you're_ Annabelle?" he repeats, "Not to be rude, but are you sure that aren't any other Annabelles in there or-?"

"No, I'm the only one," Gramma answers, waving her hand in front of her torso, "But I'm not interested in fighting. These days I only think of combat as a casual sport," she tells him.

Tank smiles and nods, "Look Gramma, I get it. You're eighty-seven years old," Tank begins; Gramma's face scrunching up at this comment as she places a hand on her hip, "Your muscles are tired and have most likely deteriorated over the years, and you're probably not used to-"

Gramma punches the wall next to Tank; completely disintegrating it before his very eyes. Tank looks down at the pile of sawdust, before gazing back up at Gramma, clearly astonished.

"You're in!" he declares.

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Beaker Estate_

Pascal, Vidcund, and Lazlo find themselves back in their original predicament – though this time their chairs are all chained down to the floor, with Circe and Loki missing from the room. "Let's get ourselves captured by Loki," Pascal reminisces, "It'll be easy to get out!" Pascal reminds his brother mockingly, "Great idea, Vid!" he shouts, turning angrily towards him, "Next time, why don't we just give him the gun too, so we can save ourselves some trouble?"

"Look, I got more than enough to feel guilty about as it is, can you please quit rubbing it in?" Vidcund counters.

Pascal nods, finding this request reasonable. "Okay," he promises, "But can we all agree that Circe is completely nuts? I mean, who makes out with someone then tries to kill them five minutes later?"

"-Apparently Circe," Lazlo points out matter-of-factly.

Vidcund groans. "She's always been like that, why would I expect anything different?" he says, mentally kicking himself, "I'm such an idiot!" Pascal and Lazlo exchange worried glances with one another, then turn to Vidcund sympathetically.

"Hey Vid, don't be so hard on yourself," Pascal states, attempting to ease his pain a little, "You didn't know she was going to try to kill us," he states, "You were enamored with her for so long you didn't know what to believe," Pascal continues, "But as your brother it's only right for me to tell you that you deserve someone who loves you and isn't afraid to tell people about it," he says. Behind him, Lazlo is giving a small nod, "You're so much more than a side piece, Vid. I wish you'd start seeing that."

Vidcund looks down at the ground in silence, allowing himself to slowly take all of this in. After a moment, he looks back up at Pascal, clearly moved by his words. "You're a very smart man, Pascal," he talks out into the open. "And I'm sorry that I got you guys into this mess. But I'm afraid that not even Einstein himself could get us out of this. – You know, if he was a sim," he clarifies, easing his brothers' confused glances. They nod in understanding, watching as a shadowy figure appears at the bottom of the doorway. They trail their eyes to the floor, knowing that their time has come.

The person pounds repeatedly on the door, ramming a sharpened object through the middle of it. The Curious brothers look up, this action catching their attentions. "What the hell-?" Vidcund states, watching as the person makes a hole in the center of the door. They put their hand through it and twist the doorknob opening the door. The person walks in, dressed head to toe in a black and red gladiator suit. The Curious brothers continue to stare at the figure, confused yet terrified at the same time.

The gladiator walks into the room and stops in front of Lazlo, kneeling in front of him, repeatedly pointing their fingers in excitement when they see him. Lazlo sweat drops, gazing to his brothers through the corners of his eyes. "Well, this is the weirdest thing that's happened all day," he comments.

"Really?" Pascal objects, "We're not even going to mention the fact that we sang and danced to a Spice Girls song to catch Loki's attention?"

Vidcund lifts his head up towards the ceiling and groans, "Would you please stop mentioning that?" he states.

"I'll stop mentioning that as soon as it stops being relevant – which is _NEVER_!" Pascal exclaims, his voice transitioning into a terrifying snarl, "So, what's up with you guys?" he calmly says, his voice returning to its original friendly register.

"Uh…guys?" Lazlo speaks up, gesturing to the gladiator who is slowly standing up, finally finished with their random victory dance. The gladiator reaches up and removes their helmet, letting her long blonde hair fall at her sides.

"Lazlo!" Crystal Vu exclaims, resting her helmet against her hip, "I knew it was you saving the city! I recognized the proton accelerators!"

Lazlo's face lights up, undoubtedly happy to see her. "You did?" he responds, beaming.

Crystal nods, "Of course! I've been looking for you guys all day," she tells them, "I heard you guys were coming back and I wanted to help, so I joined Tank's army and tracked the location of your headsets' radio waves until I found you," she informs them, stopping to catch her breath, "I would've come sooner, but it's been difficult to navigate around here since I started causing trouble."

"You must've done a lot, considering your face is on a 'If you see me, kill' poster," Vidcund notes; Pascal nodding in agreement.

Crystal crosses her arms, "Well, if he didn't want trouble, then he shouldn't be killing innocent sims," she states, "Maybe he'll think that the next time I punch him in the face!" she declares, her voice getting dark. "Anyway, let's get you out of here," she chimes, crouching in front of Lazlo. She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a small metallic device, which resembles a simple pair of scissors.

"You can cut through metal?" Lazlo ponders as Crystal circles behind him.

Crystal smiles, "I can cut through _anything_ ," she declares, pushing her bodyweight down on the device.

"Hey! You modified the Snippy Snip!" Pascal notices, eyeing his dear metallic friend.

Vidcund shakes his head, somewhat embarrassed, "I still can't believe you called it that," he groans.

Next to him, Crystal has finished cutting through the chain lock and is circling the loose chains around Lazlo's chair, trying to unwrap him as quickly and efficiently as she can. "I'll have you out in a minute, my love," Crystal announces, untangling the chains faster.

"Just to tell you, I'm going to kiss your face once you're done with this," Lazlo promises, both of them staring longingly at each other.

"Look, I like Crystal and I appreciate what she's doing for us, but can I just say – oh barf," Vidcund comments, watching as Crystal throws the remainder of the loose chains off Lazlo before the pair unites in a passionate display of affection.

"Whoo Lazlo! You go girl!" Pascal cheers nearby, watching as the pair continues to kiss one another. Vidcund turns to him, a confused and very disturbed look on his face, "What?" Pascal speaks. Vidcund shakes his head and groans.

Five minutes later, the four of them are standing in the center of the room, free of all chains. "Okay, so now what?" Lazlo asks, stepping further into the circle.

"I don't know," Pascal speaks up, "Honestly, I didn't think we were going to make it this far."

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I should probably go back out there and help Tank," Crystal informs the brothers, "He looked like he could use all the help he could get," she comments. Pascal and Lazlo nod then look up at Vidcund, awaiting further instruction.

"So Vid, what are we doing, huh?" Pascal asks him, eagerness in his voice, "Infiltrating the estate? Going after Beaker? Pranking Circe to get back at her for trying to kill us?" he suggests.

Vidcund sighs, having a hard time making eye contact with his eldest brother. "Actually Pascal, I think you guys should go with Crystal."

"What?" Pascal squeaks, his hand on his chest, "No, no, no, you can't split from us!" he exclaims, pressing further, "Who's going to make sure I don't do anything stupid?"

"-A very valid question," Lazlo states in point. Crystal nods.

"Look, I really appreciate how helpful all of you have been during this mission, but the only way I'll be able to live with myself is if I take Loki out on my own," Vidcund tells them with a heavy heart. "I caused it, I fix it – it's only fair," Vidcund adds.

"And does it look like any of us care who caused this? Vidcund, we're a team!" Pascal says, putting a brave foot forward, "It's the Curious brothers, not the Curious brother-" Pascal begins, stopping to ponder the analogy he just spoke. Vidcund raises his eyebrow. "Okay, maybe that wasn't the best analogy, but you know what I mean!" Pascal attempts to clarify; Vidcund nods. "Vidcund, I've known you your entire life, and if we're going to screw this up and send this whole thing under, then we're going to do it together."

Vidcund's gaze drifts to the floor as he releases a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry Pascal, but for once in my life, I will have to do this alone," he states, reaching over to the cabinet and pulling out a third of the supplies that Loki confiscated from them previously. Vidcund heads towards the doorway, stopping to turn around and gaze at his friends. "Goodbye my brothers, and good luck," he solemnly states, giving them a small salute before turning around and heading out the door.

"Goodbye Vid," Lazlo responds, slowly lowering his hand in sorrow. The three of them stand in silence for a bit, before Crystal steps forward, placing her helmet back on her head.

"Well, I should probably be going," Crystal announces, adjusting the helmet, "I wouldn't want to keep Tank empty handed," she explains, backing up towards the door, "Just ring me if you need any help, you know my number!" With that, Crystal waves and exits the premises, leaving Pascal and Lazlo alone. Pascal shuffles his feet as Lazlo whistles awkwardly, unsure once again of what to do next.

"Maybe we could help Izzy and Kea," Lazlo states into the silence.

"Yeah," Pascal nods, though he appears to be missing his usual pep. He takes a step backwards, accidentally knocking into a nearby closet. The door squeaks open as a bunch of black hooded cloaks and uniforms fly out, scattering onto the floor. Pascal and Lazlo undercover their heads and slowly step forward, examining the rather odd pieces of clothing, filled with utmost intrigue.

Pascal reaches down and picks up one of the cloaks, gazing at it more closely. He holds it in front of his torso and looks down at the outfit. "You know, if I didn't know any better I would say that these uniforms almost look like-" Pascal stops, his face lighting up into a smile. "-Cult uniforms," he completes, tightening his grip on the black fabric as his smile grows even bigger as it fills with even more excitement.

"-Oh no," Lazlo begins, eyeing his older brother, "Don't even think about it. We are _not_ joining a cult! Do you have any idea what cult life is like? Do you have any idea the kinds of things that they would do to people like us?! _Do you_?!" Lazlo exclaims hysterically.

"Relax, we're not actually joining it," Pascal replies, waving a hand in front of his face. Next to him, Lazlo gives a sigh of relief. "We're just going to dress up like we're cult members, gain their trust, and destroy the entire operation from the inside!" Lazlo face-palms.

"Pascal, this is a terrible idea!" Lazlo informs him, "You of all people should know that there is no logical way that this plan would ever work. Like _ever_ ," Lazlo re-emphasizes, throwing his hands up, "It would be a disaster just waiting to happen!"

Pascal shakes his head, the small smile on his face suggesting that he wasn't buying it. "Come on Lazlo, this is my dream," Pascal chimes.

Lazlo scrunches his forehead, tilting his head in confusion. "Your dream is to join your enemy's cult and attempt to turn them against him all at the risk of getting yourself killed?" he asks him.

Pascal nods, "Edgy, right?" he states. Lazlo rolls his eyes.

He sighs, "I should refuse, but I know I'm just going to end up doing this anyway so – let's do it," Lazlo concludes, throwing his fist forward, trying to sound as enthusiastic as possible.

"Sweet! Now put this on-" Pascal instructs, throwing a matching black hooded cloak to go with the uniform that he is holding, "-We have a cult to infiltrate!"

 _A Short While Later - Back at the Safe House_

"-Alright, thanks," Brent says, hanging up the Resurrect-O-Nomitron for what felt like the hundredth time that day. Breanna enters the room and races over to him, her hair messed up and circles under her eyes.

"Brent, you've got to come quick!" Breanna cries, clearly out of breath, "It's total chaos downstairs, and I can't seem to figure out how to get things under control! We gotta hurry before someone gets hurt!" She exclaims. Brent nods and rapidly follows her down the stairs, being cut off by a few sims along the way.

"Oh my gosh! She's going to kill us! She's going to come here and kill us, I just know it!" Earl E. Demise screams, twirling around in a panic, "I don't want to die again!"

"Relax," Earl's brother, Tim Lee, states, his arms crossed in front of his body, "Can't be as bad as the first time!"

Brent moves swiftly around them, dodging Melissa Sims and Luc Smith who are smustling in the center of the floor. "Excuse me," he states, stepping between them.

Mary Melons stops in front of Brent; blocking his path and pulling him into a back-breaking hug. "Come here son and hug your great grandmother!" she chimes, pushing his face into her breasts.

Brent patiently pushes his head away from the cheerful elder. "Sorry to disappoint you, Mary, but you're not my great grandmother - you're Ripp's," he clarifies, "Hey, what was your last name again?" he asks.

"Melons," she answers with a smile.

Brent shakes his head in pity, "I'm so sorry," he states.

"Brent, come on!" Breanna calls out from across the room, gesturing him towards her, "There's a fight breaking out!"

"Oh geez," Brent speaks up, "Sorry, but I gotta go," he says, waving goodbye to Mary and racing towards the opposite end of the room where sure enough, two sims are fighting.

"You're such a crumbum, Glarn!" a young female sim with red shoulder length hair yells, pointing at the Curious brothers' father, "How could you leave me with the girls just so you could run off and marry her?" she snarls, pointing across the room at an elderly woman who has a vastly similar appearance to her own. The red-haired woman steps forward, fire in her eyes, "I oughta punch you in your big, stupid face!"

"Oh, you're going to punch me in the face, huh? That's real mature!" Glarn shouts back, "My only regret was leaving my kids with such a crappy role model!" The woman gasps as Brent holds down the button on the side of his headset.

"Hey Vid, out of curiosity, do you know if your father has any enemies?" Brent asks him.

 _"Well, the only person I can think of is-"_ Vidcund's voice briefly stops on the other end, before picking back up again, _"Oh no, you didn't resurrect Glabe, did you?"_

Brent steps forward, watching the verbal fight continue in front of him. "Uh…is Glabe a young-looking woman with long red hair?"

 _"Yes,"_ Vidcund voice rings back.

Brent sweat drops, gently shifting his body weight onto his heels, "Well then…"

 _"Brent…"_ Vidcund's states, his voice filled with uncertainty and fear. Brent is silent for a few moments, allowing the realness of the situation to hit the Curious brother hard. _"Oh my gosh, you resurrected Glabe?!"_ Vidcund cries. _"Why did you do that?"_

"Hey, I just did what was instructed," Brent informs him, "I mean, how was I supposed to know about your father's secret past involving another family with a crazy woman?" he asks, a crash heard a few feet away from him. "Uh, I gotta go!" Brent tells him, releasing his finger from the button. He races over to Glarn and Glabe, who are now physically fighting each other on the floor. "Oh geez," Brent comments, stepping into the fight and trying to separate them. Glabe pushes him down.

Brent groans, lying sprawled out on the floor, his arms above his head. "And I thought this was going to be the easy job," he moans. Brent shrieks as an elderly woman pops into view, holding a lavender stuffed bunny up to his face.

"Do you like Randoulf?" she asks, cheerfully hugging the stuffed animal to her chest, "Sometimes he speaks to me when I'm standing in the darkness," the woman states, exposing her shiny white teeth. She smiles as she pulls Brent up, her hands covered with brightly colored bangles.

"I'm Kitty," she says, still holding her hand out, an overly enthusiastic expression on her face.

"Uh-huh," Brent nods, not sure exactly what to make of this woman. "That's great-"

"I have kids!" Kitty cuts off, her face beamingly, "And I have lots of friends and I love going in caves, ooh! And getting my fortune told! Margaret Collins is my favorite teller to go to, but I haven't been there in a while since I've been dead," Kitty continues on. She stops and stares off at the wall behind him.

Brent slowly gets up from off the ground, attempting to step away from the seemingly crazy woman, who is now staring intently at his shirt. "Is that blue?" she asks, not bothering to wait for Brent's answer, "Blue is my favorite color, though I also enjoy topaz – the birthstone for November. My son's birthday is in November…I think," Kitty says, tapping her fingers up against her chin in a ponder, "Actually, I don't remember, that was back in my bubble haircut days. You should definitely wash that shirt though, because it is filthy!" Kitty instructs Brent, crossing her arms in front of her chest and shaking her head.

"Right, I'll get right on that," Brent states, slowly backing away from Kitty and racing across the room. He crouches behind Breanna, attempting to hide himself from the woman's view. "And I thought Kea was nuts, but at least she's nuts in the adorable way," he comments; Breanna raises her eyebrow. "Never mind that, you got to hide me from that woman, she's level ten crazy!" he whisper-exclaims.

"Crazier than him?" Breanna counters, pointing to Knut Futa, who is chewing on the side of an arm chair as a group of Loki's relatives all cheer him on, before bursting into a chorus of evil laughter.

Brent groans, "Why is everyone in this town a lunatic?"

"Well, it is called Strangetown for a reason," Breanna responds, raising an eyebrow, "Though if one didn't know any better, this whole thing could be mistaken for a weird ritual." Brent moves up, eyeing his fiancé strangely, "Hey, I did say _weird_ ritual," she reiterates.

"Ahh," Brent states, nodding his head in understanding, stopping when he notices a young maid dusting the bottom of his shoe with a feather duster. She smiles and looks up at him; Brent's eyebrow raised.

"Hi," she greets, standing up in place and holding up her feather duster. "I'm Jessica," she says. "I used to work for Olive before – well, you know," she states.

Brent nods, "I think I have an idea," he answers, turning slightly away from Jessica. "Man, we really need to give these people something to do," Brent whispers to Breanna, "-And _quick_ ," he adds, staring at the group of townies who are playing kicky bag across the room – a crowd of sims booing their skills behind them.

Brent sighs and shakes his head, "This is going to be a _long_ night."


	8. Chapter 8: Black & White

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Eight_

Vidcund is walking down one of the various hallways in the Beaker estate, feeling rather lonely after leaving his brothers behind. He sighs and moves forward, the path fairly monotonous as the black and white tiled carpet pattern continues to stretch out in front of him. Vidcund stops at the edge of the hallway and pulls off his headset, scanning it over thoroughly in his hands. He turns it to the side, finding the control panel busted. " _Perfect_ ," he murmurs to himself, his fingers brushing up against the busted latch. He shakes his head, reaching into his pocket for anything that could fix this mess. He pulls out a stopwatch, then releases it, spying a photograph on the wall.

Vidcund steps forward and narrows his eyes, focusing on the image. The picture shows Loki post-college graduation with his arm around a blonde-haired, green-eyed girl that appears to be his sister, Erin. Both of them look surprisingly happy as Loki holds up his college degree.

Vidcund eyes move over to the next photo that is mounted on the wall, situated on the right of the graduation photo. The picture is of Loki and Circe on their wedding day. Circe is wearing a simple white dress and is enthusiastically holding a sign in front of her that says, 'Now I'm a Beaker!' with Loki standing triumphantly next to either. Vidcund had never seen either of them look so happy.

On the other side of the wedding photo is an image that was taken just a year ago. The picture shows Loki holding up who he believed to be his daughter, Vanissa; the biggest smile on his face. Vidcund stops closer, spotting a new emotion in Loki's face that he had never seen before: Loki was in love.

Vidcund steps back, having a hard time staring at the images, his eyes stinging as a pain forms in his chest. He can't stare at the photos any longer. Vidcund's eyes drift to the floor as he starts to tear up, the guilt washing over him even worse than before. "Maybe I'm the monster," he states, tightening his grip on the headset as he continues down the greyish hallway. The hallway seeming a lot darker than it did previously.

 _Meanwhile: Infiltrating the Beaker Estate_

"Well, we got Vanissa out of here," Isabella states as she enters back into the castle after making a successful trip to Jenny's house; Kea following close behind. "Now all we have to do is find Ripp…and I guess, Circe."

Kea nods as she catches up with Isabella. "Yeah, Vidcund was pretty insistent that we save his girlfriend," Kea notes.

"She's not his girlfriend," Isabella says, walking through the corridor, "Circe broke up with him a while ago. And he wasn't insistent, it was just a suggestion," Isabella argues. "He told us to use our best judgment!"

Kea stops suddenly and crosses her arms, a smug smile forming on her face. "Wow. You were sure quick to point that out." Isabella pauses in the doorway and turns to her friend, giving a frustrated sigh.

"So, what's the story with Circe anyway?" Kea wonders, quickly changing the topic, "I mean, why are all these guys attracted to her?" she asks.

Isabella shrugs, moving further into the estate, trying to dodge all of the strange doodads that are on the floor. "I don't know," she replies, "I guess it's cause she's smart and young and not ugly."

Kea ahhs, "After seeing some of the people in this town, I am not surprised," she speaks up, "I mean, have you seen Lyndsey?! I mean, whoo! Open up a window!" Kea exclaims, holding her nose and waving a hand in front of her face.

Isabella shakes her head, "What is it with that girl that gets you so riled up?"

"It's the sweater. It's _definitely_ the sweater," Kea answers, turning the corner of the hallway. "I mean, only evil people wear blue sweaters!"

"Keep a look out for Circe," Isabella tells her friend, trying to remain focused on the task at hand, "This estate is pretty big, so we probably won't run into her for a while. And I'm sure Loki is keeping her pretty well hidden-"

"Found her!" Kea proclaims, pointing to the short-haired scientist who is leaning up against one of the doors in the hallway, crossing her arms.

Circe raises an eyebrow, openly unimpressed. "Really? A scrawny girl and a pregnant chick?" she chuckles, "This is what the great Strangetown Army has sent to save me?" she states condescendingly.

"Aww! Who wants a hug?" Kea responds lovingly, reaching her arms out. Isabella moves forward and holds her arm out, blocking Kea.

"Uh…maybe not now," Isabella whispers to her friend.

Kea nods, "Ahh, I get it. My breath still stinks from the anchovy and bologna sandwich. Good call, Izzy."

Isabella turns to Circe, who continues to stand there staring at them. "So uh, you're Circe," Isabella begins fiddling with her hands, finding this situation incredibly awkward. "I'm Isabella, and this is Kea," Isabella greets, gesturing to her friend. "We're friends with the Curious brothers."

"Yeah!" Kea speaks up, "You know, the formerly pregnant guy known as Pascal, and the one with the sun shirt, you know-" Kea snaps her fingers as she tries to remember his name, "Lootsey or Lotzo or something like that. I'm not good with names, but he's the one that wears the shirt where the sun and the moon are making out," Kea elaborates, Isabella raising her eyebrow at this comment next to her, "Oh! And-"

"-Vidcund?" Circe interrupts, turning her head to give Isabella a snarl, but the young graduate is too busy exchanging nervous glances with Kea to notice. Isabella nods and turns her attention back to Circe, who is now sporting an innocent smile.

"So uh, we should probably be going then, right?" Isabella asks them. Kea nods, although Circe's mind appears to be elsewhere. "Right Circe?" she asks again.

Circe shakes her head, a smirk still apparent on her face. "Sorry, but I don't take orders from minors," she states, "If we're going to do this, then we're going to do it my way."

Kea leans forward, whispering in Isabella's ear, " _Yeow_."

" _I know_ ," Isabella whispers back, before turning to Circe once more. "Look, I know you're used to bossing people around, but that isn't how this is going to work here. So either come with us or don't. I don't care either way, you're not my girlfriend," Isabella flatly rebuttals, throwing her hands up as she continues down the hallway, Kea following close behind, seemingly surprised by her friend's commanding tone.

Circe scuffs, watching as the young girl heads down the dreary hallway not giving it a second thought. Circe sighs and pulls her foot back, using it to push herself off the wall and into a standing position. She trails after them.

Isabella leans over to Kea, lowering her voice a bit as she speaks. " _Why does Vidcund like her?_ " she asks under her breath.

Kea shrugs, " _I don't know. Probably because she's hot,_ " she answers. Isabella pulls back, giving Kea a rather perplexed stare.

Circe stops walking, hearing every word as she shakes her head at the naïve girls. _"Patience Circe,"_ she tells herself, _"It's only a matter of time…"_ She thinks, giving a smirk.

Isabella pokes her head around the corner, calling out to her. "Hey Circe, are you coming?"

"Yes, I'll be right there," Circe says sweetly before racing after them. She catches up to the pair as they stop to catch their breath.

Kea turns to Circe, giving a small smile. "So Circe, why did you decide to go against the evil guy anyway?" she asks, trying her best to make small talk, "Was it for love?" Kea dives further; Isabella looking particularly uncomfortable.

Circe rolls her eyes, "Please. I don't do things for love," she reacts, waving her hand in front of her face, "I do things that benefit me! Besides, men are easy," she goes on, "All you got to do is use your body to manipulate them into doing whatever you want," Circe closes in, eyeing Isabella who now has her back pressed against the wall. She scans her over, "But I'm sure you wouldn't know anything about that," she examines, before pushing herself back and heading down the hallway.

"Yeah," Isabella weakly states, clearly taken off-guard. "Wait, _what_?" she replies, watching confusedly as Circe exits the area. Isabella turns to Kea, looking for some sort of clarity; Kea shrugs.

 _Meanwhile: Wandering the City_

Pascal and Lazlo are wandering across the Road to Nowhere, scanning the area at every turn – both of them dressed in full cult attire. "So, what exactly are we looking for?" Lazlo asks, dragging his feet as Pascal pulls ahead of him, "And why are we dressed like the Grim Reaper again?"

Pascal rolls his eyes, "Because we're going to join Loki's cult, then establish trust with the cult members, so they'll give us all of his secrets," Pascal explains to his youngest brother, "Come on Lazlo, don't make me repeat this a third time!"

Lazlo sighs and moves forward, "Man, I still can't believe this city has a cult. It used to be such a nice place to live. Now everyone's so scared that they're turning against each other," he analyzes, a hint of sorrow filling his voice. "I'm surprised they haven't turned against us yet," he states.

"-They have," Pascal immediately answers, Lazlo raising an eyebrow. "Well, that's what Vidcund says. Poor guy thinks he doesn't have a friend in these walls. I like to think that's not true," Pascal finishes, moving forward.

Pascal races up the slope, stopping when he notices that Lazlo is no longer behind him. He scans the area before running back down, finding Lazlo standing at a rundown building across the road. "Hey! What are you doing over there? We gotta go!" Pascal shouts to him.

Lazlo turns to Pascal in the distance. "Just come here a minute!" Lazlo yells back, "There's something you have to see!" Intrigued, Pascal bolts across the street, stopping in front of his brother, who is staring straight ahead at something.

"Alright, I'm here," Pascal announces, slightly out of breath, "So what did you want to show me?"

"This," Lazlo awes, gesturing Pascal to turn around. He does so, finding himself face-to-face with a forest green, rundown building.

Pascal shrugs his shoulders, "I don't get it, it's just a building!"

Lazlo shakes his head, moving his brother's head down a bit. "Look lower," he tells him.

Pascal looks forward only to find a gigantic mural painted on the side of the old town plaza; the pair taking off their hoods to really get a good look at it. "Oh yeah, how could I miss that?" Pascal wonders, stepping forward and crossing his arms as he gazes up at the painting with Lazlo. The mural shows what appears to be their brother, Vidcund, dressed as Superman, the signature mayoral sash draped over his neck as he steps on Loki Beaker, who is lying down in the fiery metropolis below him. Vidcund is smiling as he delicately holds a precious object in his arms.

Pascal squints his eyes, adjusting his glasses a bit, "Hey, what's that he's holding?" he asks, pointing to the object that is resting in Vidcund's palms.

Lazlo smiles, seemingly entranced by the painting. "-That's Strangetown," he answers. Pascal leans forward to take a look at image of the city in its former glory, smiling as he steps back, so that he can look at the entire image.

"-And Vidcund thought no one liked him," Pascal beams. "Does it say who painted it?" he asks; Lazlo looks down at the bottom of the mural and shakes his head, both of their gazes returning to the highly detailed painting in front of them. Pascal crosses his arms. "Huh," he ponders.

 _Meanwhile: On the Other Side of the City_

Tank is standing in the center of the Strangetown Dojo, his team of potential fighters lined up in front of him. Tank nods and begins pacing back and forth. "So, how many of you have experience fighting in a war?" he asks. The sims all exchange glances with each other and shrug. Crystal raises her hand. "Yes?" Tank calls.

"Do you mean wars other than this one? Because this is the only war I've been alive for," she states, a few of the others oohing behind her.

Tank thinks this over for a moment. "No, this one counts," he concludes as his father steps forward, his hand raised.

"Well, I've fought in seven wars," he speaks up, not bothering to wait to be called upon, "And only five of them were started by me," General Buzz informs them, "And that's not counting all of the secret internal wars that none of you know about. Talk about scary!" he comments.

Nearby, Pollination Tech #9 is puzzled. "Do you even know what a war is?" he wonders, "Strangetown has only had three wars since its formation. You're not counting your schoolyard fights as wars, are you?"

"No!" General Buzz replies, crossing his arms in a pout, clearly offended. "Now no one ask me the context of any of the past three wars, cause the records were uh, lost in history," General Buzz tells them, shifting his eyes from side to side. _"Yeah, that's good. Award-winning good. You're a true leader, Buzzie!"_ General Buzz praises in his head. He stops, noticing that everyone is staring at him strangely. "What?" he asks.

Tank shakes his head and turns to the others. "Alright, we don't have much time until Loki calls in his troops, so we're going to have to train hard and fast," he concludes, gazing down at his watch. "Actually, we don't have any time at all, so everyone just do whatever Gramma does," he instructs. The group looks to Gramma, who is standing at the end of the line, fast asleep. The sims look to each other and shrug before collapsing in a slumber as well.

Tank groans, slapping his face in frustration. " _Someone please help me._ "

 _A Short While Later - On the Other Side of the City_

Pascal and Lazlo are crouched behind a solitary wall, carefully watching a group of cult members as they interact with one another. "What do you think they're saying?" Lazlo whispers to Pascal, the pair pulling their hoods up to shield their identities from unwanted eyes. Pascal shrugs.

"Beats me," he states, "But that guy over there is the cult leader!" Pascal tells him, pointing to the sim that is standing towards the back of the group, further away from the crowd.

Lazlo squints his eyes and turns to his brother, "How do you know?" he asks.

"Because," Pascal begins, "see how all of the others are drawn to him?" he notes, "The group follows wherever he goes," he continues, "And he has that red stripe around his cloak. Plus, he's the stupidest looking one," Pascal adds with a sassy smirk. "Now come on, we've got a cult to join! Just follow my lead, and we should be fine," Pascal tells Lazlo, stepping out from behind the wall and smoothing out his cloak a little, "And remember, we have to act like we're one of them."

"Right," Lazlo nods. The pair casually strolls towards the group, picking up their feet a little as they draw closer to them. The brothers walk into the center of the crowd, a few cult members noticing their arrival.

"I don't think I've seen you guys here before, are you new?" one of the cult members speaks up, his voice surprisingly deep and masculine.

Lazlo looks to Pascal in a panic. Pascal nods. "Yes," he answers, changing his voice a little, "I'm Benji and this is uh, Jorge, my Mexican lover!" he exclaims, putting an arm around Lazlo.

" _Shut-up,_ " Lazlo mutters under his breath. Pascal laughs over-enthusiastically, patting him on the shoulder a few times.

"Lovers, am I right? Woo! I have quite a few!" Pascal says, breathing a sigh of relief, the cult members seemingly intrigued by the new members. "So, how are you guys doing, huh? Are we still cool on the mission?" he asks, "Actually, I don't think the leader gave us the cult mission, so uh, what is it exactly?" Pascal asks, sporting a fake smile under his hood, hearing someone enter into the group line on his headset.

The cult members exchange glances with each other before turning back to the new members. "Our mission is to find the Curious brothers and kill them," the first cult member declares. Lazlo moves down in his cloak and eeps.

"Wow, that's cool," Pascal squeaks, trying his best to keep his voice from cracking, "Sounds like a really important mission. I'm guessing you guys really hate the Curious brothers, don't you? I mean - Man! Talk about annoying!" He speaks, clearing his throat a bit, "When will they just go away?"

"We agree completely," the cult member with the super-masculine voice states, "It will give us great satisfaction once we finally kill them. Our master has been wanting them dead for years!" he confesses, his enthusiasm rallying some of the cult members around him. "Especially the middle one - _Vidcund_ ," he continues, the cult member's voice filled with distaste, "What a waste of sim life! He is the devil in green glasses!"

"-Not to mention he dresses like an eighty year old, am I right?" Pascal adds in point, a bunch of the cult members nod in agreement. They start to laugh. "Yeah! Death to Vidcund! That loser," Pascal declares. Across town, Vidcund looks up from his place in the Beaker estate, a weird look on his face as he hears this over his headset.

All of the sudden, the cult members step back, retreating from Pascal and Lazlo as the cult leader steps forward, eyeing the two new members. "What is all this laughter about?" he roars, "We're supposed to be tracking down the Curious brothers, not cracking jokes!" he snarls.

"Geez Mr. Stick-in-the-Mud, who put you in charge?" Pascal asks, sassily placing his hand on his hips.

" _Careful_ ," Lazlo whisper-warns him, " _We don't want to cause a scene_."

" _I'm not causing a scene, I'm just asking this scary guy what gives him the right to be leader of this whole organization,"_ Pascal whispers back.

" _-Cult,"_ Lazlo corrects him.

Pascal nods, _"Right,"_ he states.

The cult leader continues to stand in front of them, tapping his foot impatiently. "I'll have you know that I was chosen to be the leader of this cult because of my bravery and quick-thinking!" he tells them, "Two qualities that you lack."

"Is that so?" Pascal speaks up, stepping forward, "Well, in that case, I'll make you a little wager-"

"Oh no," Lazlo groans.

"Oh yes!" Pascal chimes, bringing his finger up in point before continuing with the bet, "And here it is: If I can jump over the Strangetown-"

"-Slavestown," Lazlo quickly corrects.

"-Right, _Slavestown_ crater with a sports car and live, then I become the new leader! If not, the position of leader will forever be indebted to you," Pascal states.

"Benji, this is crazy!" Lazlo speaks up, cowering next to him.

The cult leader nods, "Your lover's right, Benji. I already have the leadership position. If we make this wager, then I feel I should get more than what I already possess," the cult leader replies, "I'll tell you what, you throw in your lover, and we have ourselves a deal," he negotiates, holding his hand out.

"What?! No!" Lazlo exclaims, frantically waving his hands in front of his body.

Pascal smiles, thinking this over for a bit, before grabbing the cult leader's hand with a nod. "Mister, you have yourself a deal," he agrees, shaking the cult leader's hand. "We'll jump the crater at midnight!"

"Excellent," the cult leader states, "I'll arrange the funeral plans before then, and the honeymoon plans," he adds, giving a finger snap in Lazlo's direction.

"Oh god," Lazlo moans, slapping his forehead underneath his hood, "How do I get into these messes?" he states into the silence. He turns to Pascal. Even though Pascal can't see his face, he knows Lazlo is glaring at him. "Oh right, _you_ ," he answers aloud.

"Perfect," Pascal speaks up, completely ignoring his brother, his attention still on the cult members, "So we'll meet at sundown!" he announces, "Brace yourselves, by tomorrow morning there will be a new cult leader in town!" Lazlo groans.

 _Meanwhile: Infiltrating the Beaker Estate_

Isabella, Kea, and Circe are walking up the iron staircase that leads up to the second floor of the Beaker castle. Isabella climbs to the top of the staircase and scans the area, two large master bedrooms on either side of her. "Wow," Kea awes, walking up behind Izzy with Circe trailing close behind, "You guys have two bedroom suites? You're livin' the high life!"

"Am I?" Circe states, intrigued. She crosses her arms as she leans up against one of the doorways.

"Sure!" Kea answers, "Most people only have one – and it smells like some sort of meat," she adds, giving an eager nod, "If I had one, it would probably smell like bacon."

"Wait, _you_ have a husband?" Circe asks, a doubtful look spread across her face as she points at the bacon-loving woman.

"Well yeah," Kea replies, "Do you honestly think someone like me would stay on the market for long?" she asks, "Come on Circe, you know this town loves the crazy type!"

Circe sighs, "-Well I can't argue with that logic," she responds, standing up straight and knocking Isabella in the shoulder. "What about you, girly? You got a husband?"

Isabella shakes her head, "No, and I'm not interested in looking," she responds, cracking open the door with a silver safety pin, causing Circe to raise an eyebrow. "Now come on, I think we can get out this way!" Isabella exclaims, pushing open the door with her body; Kea and Circe follow suit, entering the room behind her. Upon entering, Circe shakes her head.

"We can escape from this room, but we'll need a key to open the escape route later on," Circe explains, crossing her arms yet again, "There's a key in the next suite. We can reach it by going through the closet," she states, pointing to the half open closet at the back of the room next to the radiator. "I would get it, but I'm too tall to make it through the doorway. Go ahead Kea, you try," Circe says, nudging her forward.

Kea and Isabella look to each other, unsure of what to do. "Oh come on, it'll be easy," Circe reassures them, "It'll only take like five seconds."

Kea steps forward, unable to read Circe's face. "Well, alright. I'll be back in a second," Kea tells Isabella, stepping into the back of the closet and disappearing out of sight, leaving Circe and Isabella awkwardly standing next to each other alone.

"So," Circe speaks into the newfound silence, "You're really not interested in anyone?"

Isabella shakes her head, "No," she answers.

"You liar!" Circe snarls, her tone completely shifting as she pulls a knife out of her pocket. Isabella shrieks as Circe lunges towards her, a crazed look in her eyes. Isabella rolls to the left, dodging the stab – now finding herself in a crab-walk position.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Isabella exclaims, using her arms to slowly back away from her. "Why are you trying to kill me?! Are you insane?!"

"Listen girly, I've spent twenty-three years turning Vidcund into my personal puppet and no snot-nosed little newbie twerp is going to take that away from me!" She yells, heading straight towards her, "Now I suggest you let me kill you immediately, before you find out that you're easily outmatched!"

"Kea! KEA!" Isabella quickly shouts at the top of her lungs, clearly panicked.

Circe laughs. "There's three feet of sound proof material in these walls, there's no way that your friend can hear you," she replies smugly.

Isabella smiles, an idea popping into her head. "KEA! THERE'S A SALE ON BACON BURGERS AT CARL'S BACON SHACK!" she yells. Kea bursts into the room, running straight through the doorway.

"Really?!" she exclaims, "Man, we gotta go RIGHT NOW and-" Kea stops, eyeing Circe who is standing above Isabella holding a knife in her hands. "Oh no, let me guess. Crazy turned out to be crazy?" she asks; Isabella nods.

"Stay out of this, Kea!" Circe states, pointing the tip of the knife towards her, "Back off, or I'll kill you too!"

Kea stares down at Circe's knife for a moment before bursting out into a fit of laughter. She wipes away a few tears from her eyes, "That's a good one, Circe. You almost had me there! Now are you going to fight me or what?" Kea asks, opening her arms.

"Seriously Kea?" Circe states, sighing and rolling her eyes, "You became the first college townie to ever break the cycle and you're wasting your life defending a town that's never going to do squat for you? Come on, you're smarter than that!"

"Oh no I'm not!" Kea counters, stepping towards her, "What's a matter, Circe? Scared you're going to lose to a townie?" she asks, the pair mirroring each other's every move.

"No," Circe smirks, drawing nearer, "I'm scared I'm going to love the taste of killing you," she purrs. Circe snarls as she lunges forward, grabbing Kea by the shoulders. Kea jumps up, using both of her feet to kick Circe right in the stomach. Circe falls to the floor, then swings her legs forward, quickly lifting herself up from off the ground. "You're going to have to do better than that, kid," she states, seemingly unharmed.

"You know Circe, you're kind of a cool person," Kea states, stepping back a bit, "It's a shame we couldn't be friends. Cause you know what the best thing about friends are?"

Circe raises her eyebrow, slightly intrigued. "No, what?" she wonders.

Kea smirks, her eyes shining. "They always got your back!" she finishes, "Now!" Kea shouts, pushing Circe to the ground. Isabella grabs her wrist and handcuffs it to the radiator. Hearing the click, Circe looks up, evidently astonished.

"What the hell? GET ME OUT OF HERE RIGHT NOW!" Circe commands, struggling to release herself from the handcuff's grasp. Kea and Isabella high five and turn to her, smirking.

"Sorry Circe, but we're not friends, remember?" she answers, "- Well, not yet anyway," Kea adds, gazing down at the trapped woman, "I'll tell you what – work on not killing people and we'll talk," Kea says, looking to Isabella who is staring at her strangely. She shrugs, "I need more female friends!" She defends, reaching down and picking up the fallen knife. She turns to Isabella, holding it up delicately in her hand. "This would make a good meat cleaver, don't you think?" she asks.

Isabella shakes her head and smiles, "Oh Kea," she states, putting her arm around her best friend as they walk out the door.

"Hey where did you get the handcuffs from anyway?" Kea asks as they step into the hallway.

"I found them in the closet, along with a bunch of other things that I never want to see or talk about ever again," Isabella answers, giving a small shiver. "But enough about that, let's talk about how badass you and Tank's kid is going to be…"


	9. Chapter 9: Cult Games

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Nine_

"Day five – I think," Ripp talks, trying to keep himself from going crazy. "I can't feel my legs, and by now I am fairly certain that no one is coming to rescue me. I have accepted my fate as a test subject and look forward to a life filled with pain and misery – which, let's face it, wasn't really all that worse than the one I had before," Ripp says, crouching towards the floor, "I long for human interaction, so much so that I have actually enjoyed talking to Loki – but he doesn't come around anymore," he continues. All of a sudden, he stops and gazes down at the floor; tears in his eyes, "I'm sorry Isabella," he states. Ripp sighs, basking in the silence.

After a minute, his ears perk up, a strange thumping noise coming from the door. "Isabella?" Ripp asks, leaning forward to try to get a closer look. The thumping grows louder with each passing second, until finally, the door cracks in half, the remaining pieces flying to the floor in a dusty cloud.

"Thanks Gramma," someone speaks, "But we uh, could've just opened the door," they inform her.

Tank emerges from the dust cloud all decked out in full military attire, waving his hand in front of his face, "Man, they should really air out this place," Tank comments as he continues to fan the air. Ripp face lights up as soon as he sees him.

"Tank!" Ripp exclaims, "I've never been so happy to see you!"

Tank tilts his forehead ponderously, "Have you ever been happy to see me?"

Ripp shrugs, "Good point," he states, "Not to sound rude, but for your own safety, please tell me you're not alone," he pleads.

"Okay," Tank replies, "but in about five seconds, you're going to wish it was just me," he warns him, as his five other fighters emerge from the dust cloud. Ripp's face falls when he sees his dad.

"Oh no," Ripp says, shaking his head.

"Vastly inferior son! There you are!" General Buzz calls out, racing towards him, "I turn my back for one second and you have the nerve to tie yourself up and hide in this gigantic mansion!" his father rants, pointing at Ripp accusingly, "You know, you didn't have to do all this just because you were stuck being a Lit. major! Believe me, there will be plenty more opportunities to disappoint me in the future. This guy-" General Buzz gestures to Pollination Tech #9 who is standing behind him, "-He disappoints me every day of the week!" Ripp groans.

"Hey! What are you kids doing in here?" an alien guard states, racing into the room with dozens of similar-looking guards following behind.

Loki steps out of the shadows, his black boots stepping onto the floorboard. He points towards Tank and his troops. "Get them!" he commands.

Tank bolts in front him, standing tall. "I don't think so!" he says, charging towards him, "You better surrender now, Loki, or face the consequences!"

"Oh no, you're not going to sing, are you?" Loki groans. He turns to his troops, "Quick! Attack them before they start the chorus!" The alien guards nod and charge towards the troops. Tank backs towards the group, who looks scared out of their minds.

"Don't worry guys, we can take them!"

Five minutes later, Tank and his crew are tied up in chairs next to Ripp, with Loki and his guards laughing evilly in front of them. Tank turns to the group, "Okay, so maybe we couldn't take them," he speaks up, attempting to dodge all the glares that are being sent his way. "But at least now we'll know that for next time," he adds, giving a slight chuckle in the hopes of lightening the atmosphere.

"You think?" Crystal snarls sarcastically.

Next to Tank, Ripp sighs heavily. " _Really_? You brought five people?" he evaluates, "How many troops did you think he had?"

"I was hoping no more than eight," Tank tells him, dodging yet another group of glares from the residents. "So uh, what do you do here for fun?" he asks his brother.

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Safe House_

"Alright, that's all of them!" Breanna exclaims, throwing down the receiver of the Resurrect-O-Nomitron. "Now we need to focus on motivating these people to join our cause. The townies already agreed to help us, especially after we offered them the new downtown area, but the others might be a little bit harder to convince," Breanna says, stopping when she spots Brent staring off into space. "Hey Brent, are you okay?" she asks.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Brent replies, still deep in thought, "There's just something that doesn't make sense to me."

"Well, let's hear it," Breanna states, taking a seat down next to him.

"The townies really seem to like Vidcund, and so do a lot of the premade residents," Brent begins, carefully going through the facts in his head.

Breanna nods, "Yes."

"So if that's the case, then how did he lose the election?" Brent wonders, throwing his hands up, "It just doesn't make any sense!"

"Of course it doesn't make any sense, that's because Loki cheated!" a voice calls out behind them. Brent and Breanna turn only to find a young female sim with curly brown hair and green eyes walking towards them. She is wearing the classic all-brown driver uniform. She waves to them. "Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear you guys talking – my name is Stacy by the way," the service sim greets, taking a seat down next to them.

"Seventy-five percent of our town's population is townies, or it was," Stacy tells Brent and Breanna, "All of us voted for Vidcund because he actually treated us like we were human. The next day though, all the ballots 'mysteriously' disappeared, then magically 'reappeared' a few days later. We found out Loki had been elected the same day," Stacy sighs, "The first thing he did was disband the council to give himself absolute power – and there went our two votes. The other members on the council tried to stop him – well, except Circe - but they didn't have any luck. Then people started disappearing, and then he got rid of me. I was his driver, so I knew it was only a matter of time," Stacy recalls, giving a somber nod.

"Wow, that's really sad," Brent speaks, feeling the intensity, "I'm so sorry that happened to you guys."

"Thanks," Stacy answers, she leans up a little, "But you're going to save us now, right?" she asks, "You saved the Curious brothers, and now you're going to save the city!" she states, a group of townies walking up behind them, causing Brent and Breanna to get a bit flustered.

"Well uh, I didn't personally save the Curious brothers, but we'll try our best to get the city back," Brent informs them, "We just have to stick together and then we'll take the city back by storm!" he announces, driving his fist forward in determination. All the townies cheer.

Brent leans down and whispers in Breanna's ear. " _Is that motivational enough for you?_ " She nods, feeling a rather large smile spreading on her face.

 _Meanwhile: Back at the Beaker Estate_

Vidcund is sneaking around the staircase leading up to the second floor, stopping in front of an end table, which has a small black leather book on it. He scans the area and picks up the book, gazing at its content. On the top of the first page is a heading that is entitled 'Trash I've Disposed Of.' Vidcund looks over the rest of the page, only to find a complied list of the first and last names of every townie in the neighborhood, as well as how Loki had killed them. Vidcund closes the book a bit, feeling sick to his stomach. "What a sicko," Vidcund says under his breath, " _Well there goes any chance of me feeling bad_."

Vidcund puts the book down and removes the fruit painting from the wall above the end table, opening the fuse box that is hidden underneath it. "You've done well so far, but let's see how you hold up without electricity," Vidcund mumbles, grabbing a few of the wires. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a pair of scissors, cutting all the wires in half. Vidcund carefully tucks the loose ends out of view, closes the fuse box and heads up the stairs to the second floor.

"Just cut the electricity, now I'm heading upstairs to check out the rest of the estate," Vidcund speaks into his headset, pressing the button on the side of it.

" _Okay, but be careful. Kea and I just came from there and Circe is pretty pissed,"_ Isabella buzzes back on Kea's headset.

"Got it," Vidcund replies, taking his hand off the side of his headset. He steps into the hallway, noticing one of the master suites is open. Vidcund slowly steps to the side, peering into the room. He leans forward, finding Circe lying down on the floor groaning as she attempts to unshackle herself from the radiator.

She pulls her hand up, wincing as she breaks apart the side of her glasses, trying to use the jagged piece to unscrew the side of the handcuff. After a few minutes of senseless attempts to escape, she throws her arms out, visibly frustrated. Circe slaps her hand over her face and groans.

Feeling empathetic, Vidcund steps into the room and kneels next to her; Circe not moving a muscle. "Your stupid girlfriend did this to me," she states suddenly, hand still prominently over her face.

Vidcund lets out a heavy sigh, "She's not my girlfriend," he tells her, gently grabbing her shackled hand and reaching into his pocket. "-Again, she's just a friend. Why are you so freaked out anyway?" Vidcund questions, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a screwdriver, "You said you didn't want to be with me."

"So? I changed my mind," Circe states, rubbing her temples.

"See? That's the problem!" Vidcund exclaims, unscrewing the side of the handcuffs, "You keep changing your mind every few months, and I can't work with that!" Vidcund complains, stress apparent in his voice.

Circe sighs and slowly sits up, pushing her other hand against the radiator so that she can gaze at him face-to-face. "That never bothered you before," she comments.

"Yeah well, now it does," Vidcund replies, clearly irritated as he pops the side of the handcuff open, releasing Circe's wrist from its grasp. She gives a sigh of relief and proceeds to rub her wrist. "I've come to the point in my life where I want something stable," Vidcund confesses, "You know, something real. Is it too much to ask for me to want something like that?" Vidcund wonders, his eyes shining in anticipation.

Circe sighs, thinking this over for a bit, before looking back up at Vidcund, her face conflicted. "With me, yes," she states, her eyes to the floor.

Vidcund nods, his face almost unreadable as he sits in silence, allowing Circe's words to sink in. "Okay," he says finally, "then it's over," he states. Circe watches as he stands up and walks towards the exit, stopping when he gets to the doorway. "- And I mean it, we're over for good this time," he states firmly over his shoulder, "We are not getting back together."

Circe quickly gets up, unable to believe what she is hearing. "Vidcund," she speaks up, her hand over her chest, "Are you breaking up with me?" she asks weakly.

Vidcund swallows and nods, still in disbelief at what he is actually doing. "Yes," he marvels, giving another nod, "Oh my gosh," he mutters under his breath, a million different emotions racing through his mind as he exits out the door, leaving Circe alone.

She crouches down on the hard wood floor; her heart breaking. Suddenly Circe clenches her fists as the sadness that she is feeling morphs into pure hatred. _"You're going to pay for that Vidcund Curious, if it's the last thing I do,"_ she threatens, sniffing a bit as the tears slowly dissolve from her eyes, _"You chose to get rid of me, so now I choose to make sure that you will never be happy again. On this day I, Circe Beaker, vow to make your life a living Hell."_

 _Fifteen Minutes Later - At the Strangetown Crater_

All of the cult members are gathered around the side of the Strangetown crater, waiting for the challenger to arrive. Pascal and Lazlo are standing on the opposing side of the crater, Pascal holding the keys to the red sports car that he will be driving as he converses with his other brother via headset. _"You're what?!"_ Vidcund's voice rings out from the side of his head.

"You heard me," Pascal speaks up, cupping the earphone with his free hand, "I'm jumping over the Strangetown crater with a sports car! Pretty cool, huh?" he asks.

" _Are you insane?!"_ Vidcund's voice buzzes back.

Pascal laughs. "You already know that I am, so what's the point of even asking that?" he tells him.

" _Right, so why are you doing this again?"_ Vidcund asks.

"To gain the cult members' trust and utmost loyalty – duh!" Pascal responds, rolling his eyes at what he believes to be a rather obvious answer.

Vidcund pauses. _"So now you're in a cult?"_ he states after a few moments.

"I've been in a cult for the last thirty-seven minutes, Vid. Geez, keep up!" Pascal replies, impatiently circling his hand in the air.

Vidcund sighs, _"Well, in case you don't make it, I'll have someone pick up your body,"_ he offers.

"Thanks, but the cult leader already made the arrangements," Pascal replies nonchalantly, "So, what up with you?" he asks.

" _Oh nothing much,"_ Vidcund responds, _"I broke up with Circe a few minutes ago, and she took it rather well. I was surprised,"_ he comments, glossing over it.

"Wait, WHAT?!" Pascal exclaims, clearly shocked. "Oh my gosh! Vid, I'm so proud of you!"

Lazlo nudges Pascal in the side, "Why are we so proud of Vid? Is it cause of the beard?" he wonders.

Pascal cups his hand over the receiver, "Yes, but he also just broke up with Circe," he tells Lazlo; he smiles. "Well, I'd love to talk longer, but I have a crater to jump. See you later, man! Curious out!" Pascal states, silencing his headset. Pascal steps over to the sports car and waves to the crowd. He jumps up, losing his glasses in the process, and lands on them, cracking them in half.

"-And of course, you just broke your glasses," Lazlo notes as Pascal picks up the broken pieces from the sand, "Of course!"

Pascal smiles and waves it off, "Relax Lazlo, I'm not that hopeless without them. I can see just fine!" Pascal reassures him, before turning to the crowd and screaming at the top of his lungs. "And now I – your future leader – will jump the treacherous Strangetown crater!" Pascal declares, giving another gigantic wave to the roaring crowd.

"Uh 'future leader'?" Lazlo butts in, "You're facing the wrong way," he states, crossing his arms matter-of-factly.

"Psh, I know that!" Pascal responds, turning the wrong way once more, "Now come and help me into this car!" he commands. Lazlo sighs and turns him in the proper direction.

Lazlo continues to move him forward, stopping Pascal at the driver's side of the car. "Pascal," he whispers, "Before you do this, may I remind you that we're scientists - and as such, we should know that this isn't physically possible!" he whisper-hisses.

"' _This isn't physically possible!'_ " Pascal mocks his brother, sassily waving his hips. Pascal crosses his arms in front of his torso, "Who are you, Vidcund?"

Lazlo sighs and throws his arms out, undoubtedly having enough. "So you expect me to believe that you are fully capable of not only jumping this crater with a car, but jumping over it with minimal sight in ninety degree weather while wearing three layers of constricting clothing?!" Lazlo outbursts.

Pascal tisks and shakes his head softly. "Lazlo, Lazlo, Lazlo," he says, cheerfulness in his voice, "Honestly man, sometimes you just need to have a little fun."

"Well, at least I'll be able to have a little fun, because I'll still be alive after this!" Lazlo counters, crossing his arms with a glare. All of a sudden he loosens up, not wanting to be mad at his brother during what could be the last time he sees him. He sighs and places a loving hand on Pascal's shoulder. "Well, good luck," he wishes, stepping towards the crowd.

Pascal grabs him, holding his brother back by the shoulder. "Nuh-uh-uh! And where do you think _you're_ going?" Pascal asks Lazlo, pulling him towards the car.

Lazlo turns around, clearly confused. "I'm going to watch what might possibly be your fiery death," he comments, pushing Pascal's hand off his shoulder.

Pascal laughs. "I don't think so," he tells him, "As any good lover would do, you must come with me, so we can face his treacherous obstacle together!"

"Uh, yeah, that's not happening," Lazlo says, crossing his arms once more.

"Are you sure?" Pascal wonders, "Cause if you die then you won't have to marry the cult leader-"

Lazlo sighs, shaking his head – mentally kicking himself at what he is about to agree to. "Alright, I'll do it," he promises, "But please, please, _please_ never call me your lover again!"

"Deal," Pascal states; the pair shaking hands.

Pascal and Lazlo step into the red sports car and slam their respective doors, swiftly placing their seatbelts on as Pascal starts the car. He feels around for the glove compartment and opens it up, placing a pair of black-tinted sunglasses on his face. "Let's do this!" Pascal beams, giving Lazlo a nod before stepping on the gas. The car stays in place, sand flying up from its massive revolving tires.

"Uh, you need to put it in drive first," Lazlo tells him, "Right now it's still in park."

"I knew that!" Pascal answers, shifting the lever down, "I was just building up the suspense. Now let's roll!" he shouts, stepping hard on the accelerator. The car speeds forward, the wind knocking into their hair as they trudge up the hill.

"This day just gets better and better as I've just now come to realize that you still don't have a license!" Lazlo shouts, trying to make his voice heard over the wind.

"Hey," Pascal shouts back, "how come you never went out with Loki's sister? She was into all of that fortune teller crap like you are," Pascal wonders, doing his best to change the subject.

Lazlo squints his eyes, trying to keep the sand out, "Just because we have one similarity we're supposed to be together?" he states, "That's like saying that you should be with Nervous, just because you happen to be friends with him!"

"I guess that's true," Pascal yells as they approach the top of the crater, "That is overlooking a lot of his other qualities – like his minimal skill points, or his dreamy eyes-"

Lazlo turns, "What?"

"Nothing!" Pascal quickly shouts, pointing at the giant crater in front of them, "Here we go!" Pascal exclaims, stepping harder on the gas. Pascal and Lazlo scream as they jerk forward, Pascal pushing down the accelerator down as far as it can go. The sports car leaps off the edge of the crater, flying in mid-air as it leaps over the giant crater; landing perfectly on the other side, the brothers screaming the entire way.

"Pascal! Hit the brakes!" Lazlo commands, watching as his older brother struggles to do so; repeatedly hitting the brake pedal with his foot.

"I can't!" he shouts, throwing his head back, his hands still placed firmly on the wheel. "It's stuck!"

Lazlo's face turns to pure panic. "WHAT?!"

The car zooms forward as Pascal swerves the wheel from side to side attempting avoid all obstacles. "Look out for the house!" Lazlo shouts, gesturing ahead at their house on 2 Cover Up Road. Pascal swerves the wheel left, barely missing their mailbox. He circles around the house and races down the hill, heading back towards the group of cult members.

"Now do you understand why I tell you to avoid doing stupid things?" Lazlo yells at Pascal, "We're going to die!"

Pascal turns to Lazlo, not breaking a sweat. "Are we?" he calmly states, eyebrow raised as he turns the wheel to the left. The car jumping over the side of the crater once more before driving straight through a stream of wet quicksand. The vehicle slows down, stopping over the edge of a water fountain – the front wheels rubbing against its porcelain sides. The cult members cheer as the two brothers remain in the car – Lazlo's face filled with shock. He unbuckles his seatbelt and gazes up, holding his hands out as the cold water from the fountain gently rains on him. Lazlo laughs as he raises his hands up, overjoyed with this miraculous feeling. Suddenly, he turns to Pascal, who is grinning confidently at him, realizing that this was his plan all along. Pascal knowingly nods.

"Come on Lazlo, I'm the smartest guy in the city. I may be crazy, but I'm not an idiot," Pascal tells him. Hearing this, Lazlo throws his arms around him in a hug. Pascal tenses up a bit as a feeling of shock washes over him. "Okay, now I'm scared," he states, watching as the cult members walk over to them and gather around the motor vehicle.

"Congratulations Benji, you won fair and square," the cult leader speaks up, holding his hand out to shake. Pascal takes it and does so. "You are the new leader of this fine organization!"

"Really?" Pascal squeaks; the cult leader nods. Pascal jumps out of the red sports car and turns to the crowd, blowing them air-kisses with his open palms. "Thank you! Thank you! For our first order of business, I wish to revise our cult pledge," he tells them, "How about instead of killing the Curious brothers, we change our evil ways and vow to protect the city?" he exclaims, pointing his finger up towards the sky.

The cult members exchange glances with each other before the former cult leader steps forward, his stance filled with intrigue as a cricket chirps in the background. "And why would we do that, new leader?" he asks.

"Well, uh, because if you think about it, what better way to get revenge on the Curious brothers than to become friends with them?" Pascal asks the crowd, "I mean, anyone could just kill someone, but it takes a real sim to tolerate someone for the rest of their lives!"

"-Ain't that the truth," Lazlo mutters, leaning against the top of the sports car.

Pascal turns back to the crowd and extends his hands out, smiling under his cloak. "But before we do that, I have something really important that I need to tell you guys," Pascal stays, reaching up towards his cloak. "I'm not really Benji, and this guy over here isn't really my lover," he confesses, " – In fact, he never wants to be called that ever again," he says, giving a sigh as he gently moves his hood down. "The truth is, I'm not a cult member, I'm just an unemployed scientist. My name is Pascal and that's Lazlo-" he confesses, loosely gesturing his hand out at Lazlo; his brother waves nervously. "-And I have another brother named Vidcund, who a bunch of you probably already know. And the closest I've ever come to doing something evil is inventing this machine called the Resurrect-O-Nomitron, which I now realize is the furthest example I could've used to support my previous statement about doing evil things, so-" Pascal awkwardly turns towards the car.

"Wait a minute!" one of the cult members speaks, moving forward, catching the young scientist's attention. " _You_ invented the Resurrect-O-Nomitron?"

Pascal nods, "Yeah, I invented a lot of things: the Resurrect-O-Nomitron, the Game Simulator, that bookshelf where you can learn every single skill super fast-"

"I love that bookshelf," one of the cult members tells the others, "I got it when I was promoted to principal last year. Two weeks later, I was appointed a Senior Professor at Sim State - it was incredible!" he raves. "You seriously invented that?" he asks.

"Yeah," Pascal tells him, "Fun fact, I actually invented most of it while I was on the toilet. We went to this mayoral banquet for my brother Vidcund a few years back and I got really sick from the food," he confesses, doing a hand wipe in front of his body, "That's the last time I eat fried clams with cinnamon apple sauce. Yuck!" he shivers, sticking his tongue out distastefully. "So, who wants a tour of where the action happened?" Pascal offers. A bunch of the cult members promptly lift their hands up, oohing at the offer. "Great! Now let's go!" Pascal exclaims, gesturing them towards the hill. They step forward and follow behind him as Lazlo nudges Pascal in the side.

"Please tell me you're not talking about the bathroom," he whispers to him.

Pascal laughs, "Oh Lazlo, my dear naïve little brother, you know that's the first stop on our tour!"

Lazlo groans. "Just try not to make this embarrassing for us," he pleads.

"Will do!" Pascal promises, racing forwards, "Hey! Who wants to see the spot where Vidcund wet his pants?" he asks. All of the cult members throws their hands up and cheer 'yes'; some of them even take out cameras. Lazlo face-palms, then slides his hand down his face, watching as all the cult members blindly follow them.

"-And that my dear Lazlo is what happens when you have level 10 Charisma skill," Pascal marvels, nudging his brother in the side, a smug smile shining on his face.


	10. Chapter 10: Through the Dark

**Author's Note:** The following chapter contains violence and dark themes. Read at your own discretion!

* * *

 **Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Ten_

 _Meanwhile: Infiltrating the Beaker Estate_

" _I'm telling you, Isabella, there's something about this whole takeover that makes me feel suspicious,"_ Brent's voice rings out from Isabella's headset. Isabella and Kea are standing outside of the basement in what used to be Nervous Subject's bedroom. Isabella is pacing as she continues with the team's hourly status updates.

"Brent, there's a lot of things in this takeover that are suspicious, which one in particular are you referring to?" she asks, her hand propped up against one of the earpieces.

" _-Circe,"_ Brent speaks suddenly, his tone sounding cold as he says her name, _"No one trusts her, Izzy. And I'm starting to think that her role in this is more than what she leads us to believe."_

"Well, she did try to kill us earlier," Isabella adds, seemingly in point with what her brother is suggesting.

On the other end of the line, Brent sighs. _"Just be careful, okay?"_ Brent's voice rings out, _"She may have half the town fooled, but if she's up to something seedy, she's not going to get it past me."_

"Right," Isabella responds with a slow nod, "Now gather everyone up and head over here. I may need you guys sooner than I thought," Isabella states, taking a peek out at Loki through the doorway, who is pacing around a few of her friends.

" _Will do,"_ Brent rings back. After a few moments, Brent speaks once more, his voice softer and more endearing, _"Oh, and Isabella…?"_

"Yes?"

" _I know I don't say it a lot...with me being your brother and all,"_ he rambles on, _"But you know, I-I care about you,"_ he continues, before pausing a bit to release a small sigh, _"Thanks for being in my life."_

Isabella steps back, the seriousness and danger of this whole situation finally hitting her hard. "Brent, you're scaring me," she begins, the taste of copper forming in her mouth, "We're not going to die."

Isabella is met with silence on the other line. "Brent?" Isabella calls out to him.

" _Yeah, I know,"_ Brent says suddenly, though Isabella can tell that he does not believe what he is saying. Isabella sighs, giving her older brother a quick goodbye before disconnecting the transmission. She turns to Kea, watching as her best friend kneels at the base of the doorway in front of them. Kea reaches into her backpack and pulls out the familiar pair of pink binoculars from their very first secret spy mission. Kea holds the binoculars up to her eyes and gazes through the window.

"Do you see anything?" Isabella asks, crouching down next to her, "Is Loki really keeping them in there?"

Kea nods, putting down her binoculars to look at Isabella, "Either that or he has a rather creepy obsession with life-sized dolls," she answers.

Isabella slaps her forehead, clearly frustrated. "Oh gosh."

Kea nods, slowly getting up from off the ground and placing her binoculars back into her backpack. "So, what's the plan?" she asks.

Isabella looks up from the ground and at her teammate. For the first time in her life, Kea looks as though she is taking a situation seriously. "We have to get them," Isabella says, turning towards Ripp, Tank, and the others, who are all shackled to chairs on the other side of the door.

Kea nods and pulls her backpack up onto her shoulders. "Alright," she states as she turns towards the door, not skipping a beat.

Isabella stops her, preventing Kea from placing her hand on the door handle. "So that's it? You're just going to follow everything that I say? No questions asked?" Isabella blurts out.

Kea moves her head up and down in agreement. "Yes," she states as if it were obvious. "Since when have you ever steered me wrong?"

Isabella begins to tear up a bit as she looks up at what may be the most loyal friend in existence. After a few moments, Isabella steps back a bit, wiping some of the tears from her eyes as she is finally able to find her voice. "Well, alright then," Isabella comments, before moving back a tad to allow Kea to gain access to the door.

Kea turns to Isabella, giving her best friend one last nod. "Alright Izzy," she begins, grabbing Isabella's hand as she gazes up at their target in confidence, "Let's do this thing!"

 _Meanwhile: Near the Absolute Center of the Beaker Estate_

Vidcund is walking through the Loki and Circe's second living room conversing with his brothers in what he knows may be the last time. _"Hey, does Loki still have that statue of himself in repose?"_ Pascal's voice rings from Vidcund's headset. Vidcund hears shuffling from the other end as Pascal raises his voice. _"And over here we have the lovely kitchen, with an excellent view of the entire city to your left!"_

Vidcund groans, leaning up against one of the light-wooded antique cabinets, "Yes. Unfortunately, I am standing right next to it," he replies, stopping to peek around the corner, making sure that he still is alone. "And are you giving a tour of the house?" he questions his eldest brother.

" _Uh…well, you see-"_ Pascal begins as more shuffling is heard in the background. _"Hey uh, why don't you talk to Lazlo!"_ Pascal quickly counters, pushing his little brother on the line.

" _Hey Vid, what's up?"_ Lazlo asks, swiftly picking up the conversation from Pascal's departure.

"Not too much," Vidcund informs, "Just wanted to make sure that you two were still alive," he notes, "I haven't run into Loki since we tied him up, and it's pretty quiet around me," Vidcund continues to document, "Unfortunately, that might be bad news for our friends."

" _Geesh, you can say that again,"_ Lazlo rings back _, "Isabella told us a few minutes ago that our army is tied up, and she and Kea are going to go into the basement to rescue them."_

"By themselves?" Vidcund calls out, his voice in a panic, "Lazlo, you can't let Izzy do that! That basement is armed with every weapon I can think of!"

" _You should tell her then. She'll take it a lot better from you than me,"_ Lazlo tells him.

"I can't! Our connection is busted," Vidcund explains, "I tried to fix it, but I can't seem to get a clear signal. I had to get Brent to try to warn her about Circe, and Kea's not answering her headset. She probably turned it off to focus!"

" _Ah,"_ Lazlo sounds from the other end, _"Well, we'll try our best, but there's no guarantee that Isabella will listen."_

Vidcund nods, though at this very moment, his mind appears to be elsewhere. "Hey uh, Lazlo?"

" _Yeah?"_

"I know this may seem extremely off-topic but – how accurate is Margaret Collins in her readings?" he asks him.

" _Scary accurate,"_ Lazlo responds, _"Why else do you think mom went to her all the time? Other than them being friends and all…"_

Vidcund's stomach sinks as his throat begins to feel dry. "But there is chance that she could be wrong, right?" he says, finding himself almost pleading with his brother.

" _Hardly,"_ Lazlo replies once more, _"That woman sees everything! Now what is all this about?"_

"-Nothing," Vidcund quickly states; he looks towards the ground, "Nothing at all. Just warn Izzy, okay?"

Shuffling is heard from the other line. _"Okay,"_ Lazlo promises, _"I gotta go now, we have to head back,"_ he informs him, _"See you later, Vid."_

"Yeah," Vidcund speaks, the uneasy feeling of dread forming in his stomach as he knows that he is about to lie to his brother, "See you later."

Vidcund disconnects his device before leaning back up against the wall and releasing a heavy sigh. _"I wonder if this is how inmates feel when they know they're_ _about to be executed_ _,"_ he thinks to himself as a wave of fear washes over his body. Vidcund moves forward, eyeing the clear exit that is situated across the living room. He feels himself drawing towards it as he stands up from the carpet. _"I could leave right now and no one would know,"_ Vidcund's mind races, though deep down he knows that something – or rather, _someone_ \- is holding him back.

" _No. I can't abandon her,"_ he reinstates firmly in his head, swiftly dismissing all doubt. _"She didn't abandon me."_

With that, Vidcund takes off his headset and cracks it open, attempting to locate Isabella's transmission signal.

 _Meanwhile: In the Basement of the Beaker Estate_

Ripp, Tank, General Buzz, Sheba Hugs, Crystal, Pollination Tech #9, and Gramma eXtreme are still locked up in Loki's basement, shackled to dark wooden chairs. "You couldn't have just called for backup," Ripp complains to his brother, "No! You had to go and be the hero!"

"No need to get cold with me, I was just trying to rescue you," Tank replies, well aware that their conversation was all but private. In front of him, Loki is pacing the floor, a sinister grin plastered across his face. "Okay, no offense man, but that face has me very concerned."

Loki laughs, stopping nearby the window to gaze out at the barren cityscape. "Soon all will be right with the world, for it is destined that I do the same to Vidcund as he has done to me."

"Uh…and what does that mean exactly?" Tank questions as his surrounding teammates begin to ponder this as well.

Loki leans forward, crouching down in front of General Buzz's eldest son. "Now that's really none of your business, boy. But let me just say one thing: Your friend is about to go down in history as one lucky girl!"

"You're talking about Isabella, right?" Tank asks, his face filled with uncertainty. Loki nods, his evil expression growing stronger and more apparent as the situation finally clicks in Tank's brain. "Oh God!"

Next to him, Ripp moves forward in his seat. "What? What?" Ripp calls out, looking towards his brother, whose face is filled with a mix of both dread and disgust. "I don't get it!"

"Don't you remember what Vidcund did?" Tank asks him, "Loki's saying that he's going to sleep with Isabella as payback for what Vidcund did with Circe!"

"Oh God!" Ripp spews in response, a monstrously uncomfortable feeling spreading throughout his body as he fills with both hopelessness and fear. Ripp turns to Loki, clear pain in his voice, "I'm begging you, please reconsider. This is a terrible, terrible idea!"

"Sorry Ripp, but she's caught herself in a web of trouble," Loki concludes, turning back towards the window, "It has to be done."

Tank scrunches his eyebrows, clearly not buying it. "But don't you think that's really unfair to Isabella?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize supervillains were supposed to be fair!" Loki replies exuberantly, his voice filled with sarcasm as he rolls his eyes up at the ceiling.

"-But that's not even the same!" Ripp fires further, "Isabella doesn't even like Vidcund!"

"Psh, please," Loki says, rolling his eyes once more, "She wouldn't have gotten caught up in this mess if she didn't at least have _some_ feelings for him!" he exclaims, before pacing into the back room.

Ripp turns to Tank, struck hard by what he has just heard. "Do you think that's true?" he wonders, "Do you think Isabella has a thing for Vidcund?"

Tank shrugs, "I don't know." Ripp looks down at the floor and sighs.

 _A Few Minutes Later_ _–_ _Outside of the Basement Door_

Kea and Isabella are still standing outside of the door intently watching their captured friends, hoping to find the right moment to dive in and save them. "Alright. It looks like Loki's gone," Isabella tells Kea, "Let's go in there quick, before he comes back."

"I don't think so!" a voice rings out from behind the pair. Isabella and Kea freeze in place as they lock eyes with a small group of Loki's guards. "Step away from the door, Kea!" one of the alien guards commands.

"Kea?" Kea speaks up, loosening up a bit, "I'm not Kea, I'm Mia – Mia Gluestick!" she announces, turning to Isabella with a small smile, "And this is – Mizzy – and we're Loki's plastic surgeons!" she continues, trying her best to make her lie sound convincing, placing a delicate hand on her chest, "I apologize because I know we obviously haven't done a very good job."

"You honestly expect us to believe _that_?" the alien guard that seems to be in charge states, his arms crossed in disbelief.

"Well yeah, I mean, haven't you seen his face?" Kea wonders. The alien guards continue to stand there stationary. The one in charge steps forward and reaches into his pocket, pulling out what appears to be a black laser gun. Kea and Isabella step back, their hands up towards the ceiling as they walk as far back as they can go.

"Well, that could've gone better," Kea comments as the alarm system starts to sound around them.

The alien guards frantically glance around the area, searching for a possible trigger.

"Intruders?" one of the other alien guards states.

"We're dealing with intruders!" the head alien guard counters.

"More intruders?" another one suggests.

The head alien guard shrugs, "Never mind that, just take them down! Blondie first, she's the smarts!" he orders.

"Man, I never thought I would hear that sentence!" Kea beams, completely ignoring the seriousness of the situation. Two of the alien troops step forward and corner them, throwing their weapons back to strike.

Isabella rushes over and throws herself in front of Kea, blocking the guards from her stomach – the clubs hitting her instead. Isabella moans and falls to the floor.

"Izzy!" Kea shrieks, bending down next to her best friend, who is now holding her newly bruised midsection – her hand over her stomach.

"Nice job, troops. Now let's go in for the kill!" the head alien guard commands, moving in on them. Kea tightly grips Isabella's hand as she swiftly types away on her cell phone with the other. The head alien guard raises an eyebrow before slapping the silver rectangular device from Kea's grasp.

Kea looks up, rather offended. "Well, that was rude."

"Hey! What are you people doing in my corridor?" an angry, yet oddly familiar voice rings out from behind the troops. The crowd steps back, revealing two black-cloaked individuals. "I, Benji, the leader of this cult, will not stand for this!" Pascal continues, "Isn't that right, my Mexican lover?" Pascal states, turning to Lazlo.

Lazlo groans, "I told you never to call me that again."

"Right, right," Pascal recalls, "And yet the leader of this cult listens to no one!" he exclaims, dramatically pointing his hand in one of the guard's faces.

The head alien guard steps out from behind the others and stops in front of the pair, crossing his arms in irritation as he scans them over. "What the hell is going on here?"

"What the hell is going on here?" Pascal repeats, his voice growing stronger and his volume clearly out of control. "I'll tell you what the hell is going on here!" he shouts, throwing his arm up into a fist. All of a sudden, he pauses, quickly moving his arm back down to his side, "Actually, could someone tell me what's going on here? Cause I honestly don't know," he calmly requests.

"We were about to kill these intruders," the head alien guard says, gesturing towards Kea and Isabella who are still crouched down on the floor. Pascal's eyes widen when he sees them.

"Ah yes, killing intruders," Pascal begins, "But, you know, that's really more of a cult thing. So why don't you guys leave and we'll kill them, because this is our corridor after all."

The head alien guard shakes his head, "Why would you do that, when we can just do your work for you?" he questions.

"Hey, I don't go around here telling you how to do your job!" Pascal exclaims, poking the head alien guard a few times in the collarbone.

"Uh, you just did," Lazlo comments.

Pascal glares at his little brother. "Thanks, Jorge."

The head alien guard huffs, giving Pascal a sassy smirk. "Yeah, we're not going to do that. There's no way that we're going to let you guys get credit for our dirty work!"

Pascal sighs, looking over the head alien guard a few times before lingering back to his original standing place. "Well, in that case, you leave me no choice-" Pascal begins. He throws his arm back and slaps the head alien guard straight in the face. The head alien guard falls backward, hitting his head against the wall. Pascal turns to Lazlo and shouts, "Run!" The pair race down the hallway at full speed, Pascal dropping his first set of backup glasses on the way.

The head alien guard groans as he picks himself up, rubbing his aching head as he glares at the departing cult members. "Get them!" he commands to his troops, "No one slaps me and gets away with it!"

The troops nod and race down the hallway after them, the head alien guard leading the pack. In no time at all, Kea and Isabella are once again alone.

"So, Pascal and Lazlo joined a cult," Kea speaks into the silence.

"Yeah," Isabella nods.

"Are you surprised?" Kea says suddenly, still hanging onto her best friend's hand.

Isabella smiles, "No."

Kea moves up a bit as Isabella pushes herself up off the ground, still hanging onto her stomach. Isabella sighs as she makes eye contact with Kea, whose facial expression continues to be filled with utmost worry. "I'm fine," Isabella states, "But I need you to go."

" _What_?"

Isabella takes a few steps away from Kea, stopping at the center of the door. She places her hand onto the door ledge and sighs, before turning to look her friend directly in the eyes. "Kea, you once did something very difficult to save me - you pushed me into the dirt," Isabella clarifies, "- At first I didn't understand why, but now I get it," she informs her, "So now it's time for me to pay you back for everything that you have ever done for me as a friend," Isabella states, tears forming in her eyes, "I have to go in first. I have to go in alone," she informs her, "You mean more to me than anything in this world. I can't let you get hurt."

For a while, Kea says nothing. Finally, she sighs and begins to speak, her eyes shining a bit as she does so. "Oh Izzy, you really don't understand anything about friendship, do you?" she asks, "That's never going to happen, because when you're best friends with someone, you stick by them through every hardship, even if you have zero chance of making it out alive – because that's what friends do," Kea softly tells her.

Isabella steps back, these familiar words hitting her hard. Isabella looks down at the floor, attempting to emotionally calm herself. "You're a good friend, Kea. But you need to listen to me, I'm in charge," Isabella reminds her best friend.

"I know," Kea nods.

"-So please, just stay here and stay safe," Isabella tells her, "Pascal and Lazlo should be back here soon. Then I want you to-" Isabella begins, stopping herself short when she realizes what she is doing. "Actually, you know what? This is your decision; I trust your judgement," Isabella says; Kea perking up a bit at this news, "When they get here, do whatever you think is right, and if you need help, I'll be there for you."

"Sounds like a plan," Kea replies. She wraps her arms around Isabella and gives her a caring embrace. "Good luck, Isabella."

Isabella nods as she pulls away from the person she knows better than anyone in the world. "Thank you," she states, feeling her heart beating rapidly in her chest. She is scared, but she knows she needs to be strong for the others. "Here I go," she states, letting out one last exhale before slowly creeping through the double doors.

…

Isabella enters the basement and slowly rounds the corner, doing her best to scope out the situation. She walks forward, gasping when she sees Ripp. His flushed face and matted clothes look as though he has been there for days. "Ripp!" Isabella exclaims, rushing towards him. She stops in front of Ripp and kneels – his forehead sweating immensely. Isabella gently grabs his head and lifts it up, brushing a few stray hairs away so that she can plainly see his face.

Ripp groans and opens his eyes, still slouched down in his chair. "Izzy?" he moans, squinting his eyes a bit, "Is that you?"

Next to him, Tank tries to jump up in his seat. "Izzy! Quick! You have to get out of here!" he warns.

Isabella tilts her head, confused. "What? Why?" she asks.

"Because Loki's going to sleep with you and then kill you - probably!" Tank exclaims, "If he finds out that you're here then-"

"Well, well, well, isn't this an honor," Loki's voice rings out from behind them. Isabella tenses up as she slowly turns to look at the one man that she has heard so much about, but never actually met. Loki walks back into the room and towards her, an evil grin shining on his face. He crosses his arms in front of his torso as he eyes Isabella near her ex-boyfriend. "Do you like what I did to your boyfriend?" he smirks.

Isabella turns towards him as she looks into Loki's cold, dark blue eyes. Her body begins to shake as a strange new emotion spreads throughout her body. Isabella clenches her fists. All at once, she walks forward and throws a punch at him, knocking Loki square in the jaw. Ripp opens his mouth in shock, unable to believe what he is seeing.

Loki steps forward, brings his hand up to his jaw and rubs the side of his face. After a few moments, he ceases, readjusting his stance, seemingly unfazed. "Ah, Isabella eXtreme. I was wondering when I would finally get the chance to meet you," Loki says as he begins to pace around the room, Isabella carefully watching his every move, "I'm so glad I get to meet the girl who saved the Curious brothers," he completes, his tone turning terrifyingly sinister.

Loki's expression grows darker as he storms closer towards her, "You have committed multiple crimes against the Slavestown government," he rages further, "You freed the Curious brothers, you hid four wanted criminals in your bedroom, and fought in court against me," Loki continues to list, "You formed an army to start a revolution against my government. You broke into my estate and ruined the value of my floor!" Loki shouts, gesturing down to the scratched-up floor pieces. Loki stops for a moment and exhales before continuing with his rant.

"But your most treacherous crime – the reason why you must suffer – is because you love my greatest enemy," Loki proclaims, stepping towards her. Isabella looks back in a panic, finding herself now backed up against a wall. "And anyone who chooses to love and respect such a monstrous beast is the sickest sim in the universe!" he yells. Loki grabs Isabella by the shoulders and throws her against the wall. Isabella lets out a small cry as her already injured small frame thuds against the concrete. She falls to the floor, the others that are tied up around her watching helplessly in horror.

"STOP IT! STOP HURTING HER!" Ripp screams, his eyes red with tears. Loki ignores him as he storms over to Isabella's weak body. She shakily lifts her head at his arrival.

"I spent years crafting the perfect plan to tear Vidcund apart," Loki speaks out, "I took his city, I took his girlfriend, I took his career – _I took his will to live_ ," Loki emphasizes, "I beat him up and reduced him to nothing! Then you came along and built him back up! You gave him hope! You made him think that he could beat me!" Loki rages on, his voice echoing throughout the basement, "That this whole thing wasn't over!" Loki stops and briefly scans the broken face of the girl that had ruined everything. "You make me sick," he states, spitting on her. "You love him, don't you?"

Isabella moans, but says no distinguishable words.

Loki leans down and grabs her from behind, placing the young girl into a choke hold. "Isabella eXtreme…loving my greatest enemy," Loki snarls, spitting her name out like dirt. He tights his grip around her as Isabella struggles to break free. "Tell me, does it take your breath away?" he questions, whispering tauntingly in her ear. He steps back, releasing his arms from her neck, causing the young girl to fall to the floor once more.

Everyone looks down as Isabella struggles to get up, her face bleeding as Loki stops just inches away from her. "I hate people like you, Isabella," Loki remarks, his voice filled with rage, "I hate people that go around thinking that they can do whatever they want – that the rules somehow don't apply to them," Loki continues, "That you can just go around saving prisoners and garbage sims without any consequences whatsoever! Did you honestly think that you were going to get away with it?" Loki shouts, talking to the injured Isabella who is crouched down in the corner of the room, holding onto her bleeding face, "You don't even deserve to live in this neighborhood!"

Isabella groans as Loki leans down towards her, his shadow barely covering her. "I'd banish you, if I knew that there was even a slight chance of you never coming back, but I'm no fool," Loki remarks, turning away to pace in front of her once more, "The only way to stop you is to get rid of you for good! The punishment fits the crime for someone who spends their life hanging around with _garbage_ ," Loki declares, turning his back towards Isabella, seemingly satisfied that he has put her in her place.

The young girl begins to stir, his words striking a soft spot in her body. Isabella slowly sits up with one hand up against the wall, and the other rubbing her injured throat. " _My friends are not garbage_ ," she mutters through her shortened breath; barely able to speak.

"What?" Loki states, turning back, unsure if he has heard her correctly.

"I said my friends are _not_ garbage!" Isabella raises her voice even further, her body seemingly filling with adrenaline as her voice grows even stronger. Isabella gradually gets up, leaning up against the wall to support her body, accidentally knocking the side of her headset into the wall, turning it on. Isabella notices that Ripp is signaling to 'stop talking' behind Loki, but she ignores it.

"How dare you talk about my friends when you even know them!" she shouts, staring right at the supervillain, "What about Pascal?" she questions, "You've known him for fifteen years and you still don't even see how bright he is!" she reminisces, a smile growing on her face as she talks about him, "All the light and the positivity that he brings to every situation!"

Loki tilts his head, clearly confused as Isabella continues on, her eyes brightening a bit more as she talks about them. "And Lazlo. Oh Lazlo, he is such a great friend – he would do anything for his family," she tells him, "And Tank? He's so determined and driven to do the right thing – he's proof that anyone can change." Behind her, Tank smiles. "And of course, I couldn't forget about Ripp," Isabella says, gesturing behind to him. Ripp gives Isabella a small grin. "He's a sweetheart, just a really great sim – and I've always thought that," she tells Loki, although Ripp feels as though she is talking directly to himself.

"Okay girly, that's enough – I think you've made your point-" Loki begins.

"-And Kea Kalson!" Isabella shouts, completely cutting him off, "The first college townie to ever break the cycle and my crazy meat-loving best friend," she continues, smiling extra wide when she says this, "God I would do anything for that girl. She's been through hell and back but she's got this pure goodness inside of her. You tried to kill her and you still couldn't break her smile. And you know what? You never will," Isabella states matter-of-factly, "I know you won't," she firmly assures him.

Isabella sighs and looks down at the ground, wiping the tears from her eyes as she prepares to say the hardest words to the coldest person that she has ever spoken to in her life – but for some reason, she can't stop smiling. "And Vidcund," Isabella begins, looking intensely into Loki's eyes.

"Izzy no-!" Ripp shouts out.

"I don't even know where to start," she begins, staring straight into the eyes of his greatest enemy, no fear on her face, "He's just so nice and warm, and he made feel like I actually mattered, when deep down I thought I didn't," she confesses, "Vidcund's the best mayor this town has ever had, because he cares about everybody and he cares so much for all of these people – even you. And he's got such a big heart, and he came here and risked it all to save a town that doesn't even like him. And if that isn't dedication, then I don't know what is," Isabella says, finding herself getting rather emotional by this whole confession.

Loki steps forward, clearly unfazed by all of Isabella's comments. "Let me tell you something about Vidcund, Isabella," Loki says, his hands clasped tightly around his back, "He's a cheat, a liar. He'd screw you over in a second just to save himself!" he declares, "He made up all these lies just to get you to do his dirty work! He's using you, Isabella, leaving you to face the punishment while he runs away!" Loki rages on, "Vidcund doesn't care about you – he never did. And if you truly think that he does, then you're delusional!"

"No. You're wrong," Isabella boldly states, "Vidcund would never do that!"

"Oh really?" Loki cooes, strolling towards the young college graduate, "Then where is he?" he says, putting his arms up and over-exaggeratingly looking around the room, completely oblivious to the fact that the man himself has just walked through the door behind him, "Why, he's fled the scene! Letting you take the blame for what he did, just like the coward he's always been!" Vidcund steps behind Loki, his arms crossed in front of his torso, eyebrow raised. "Look around Isabella! This is what happens when you have faith in a liar!" he declares, stepping closer and closer to the red-haired girl.

Loki lowers his voice, making it cold and sinister. "I'm going to enjoy killing you-"

Vidcund storms forward, grabbing Loki roughly by the shoulders and thrusting him around to face him. "Touch her once and you're _dead_ ," Vidcund warns in a chilling tone.

" _Vidcund…"_ Loki growls, aggressively grabbing his enemy by the shoulders and throwing him back towards the wall.

"Vidcund!" Isabella shouts as Loki punches Vidcund in the gut, causing him to fall at the backdoor. He lands at the base of the concrete stair steps. Isabella reaches up towards her headset and presses the small green button. "Brent, now!" she commands, her voice attempting to rise above the chaos. Isabella races over to help Vidcund.

Suddenly, Pascal, Lazlo, and Kea burst through the double doors. "Freeze, Loki!" Pascal commands, facing in the opposite direction of his nemesis.

Lazlo sighs and turns him in the right direction as Vidcund tosses over a new pair of glasses. Lazlo catches them and hands them to Pascal, who carefully places them onto his forehead. "Ah, thank you, gentlemen!" he beams.

"-More like thanks a lot," Kea corrects him, watching as crowds of alien guards begin surrounding them on all sides; one of them holding up a large picture frame.

"Sir! We have caught the criminals," the head alien declares, gesturing at the tied up and the trapped beings behind him, "What would you like us to do with them?" he asks.

Behind Loki, Isabella is tearing off her black shirt sleeves and tying them together, before wrapping the newly-freed fabric around Vidcund's injured waist. "You don't have to do this," Vidcund tells her between breaths.

Isabella nods, continuing to frantically wrap the piece of clothing around his body before Loki notices. "I know," she states with a stiff smile, "I want to. I live for helping my friends!"

Vidcund nods, giving a small smile as he pulls Isabella into a delicate side hug. Isabella sighs.

"It just sucks, you know?" Isabella speaks into the distance, "I sucks that everything is being fueled by hatred," she says, "Hatred accomplishes nothing." Vidcund weakly nods, these words hitting him hard. He doesn't know why, but all of a sudden he feels very uncomfortable.

"…Oh yeah, and we also found this!" the head alien guard talks on to Loki. He turns the picture around exposing the dictatorial photo of Loki with the words 'I eat cat poop!' coming out of his mouth.

Pascal bursts out laughing. "Hahaha! Cat poop!" he laughs, covering his mouth with his hand and nudging his youngest brother in the side, "It's funny cause it's true!"

Loki turns around, shooting Pascal an ugly death glare. "Pascal," he states, "You have got to be the dumbest, smart person that I have ever met!" he exclaims.

Pascal turns to Lazlo, a look of pure content on his face. "He _likes_ me!" he chimes. Loki groans and shakes his head, before pointing his finger at the three stray sims standing in front of him. He moves his finger towards the center sim and narrows his eyes at her.

"Well, look who we have here…Miss Kea Kalson," Loki sarcastically coos, seeing the college townie in person for the first time.

Kea steps forward and turns behind her to Pascal and Lazlo as she points excitedly at the supervillain. "Hey! It's the evil guy!" she announces, circling her hands in front of her torso, his name escaping from her mind, "You know-?"

"-Loki," Loki finishes, crossing his arms.

"No, that's not it." Loki rolls his eyes. "Hey Izzy, check it out! This guy is wearing a blue sweater!" Kea exclaims, gesturing at a photo of Loki that is on the wall, "See? I told you blue sweaters were for evil people!"

Loki cocks his brow, clearly confused. " _Right,_ " he states.

"Hey! Do you remember me?" Kea asks him, sounding surprisingly friendly and positive in tone, "You tried to kill me!"

"Uh, you're going to have to be more specific," Loki tells her, "I've tried to kill a lot of people."

"Right, right. I mean, professional supervillain isn't really a profession I would choose, but you know, to each their own," Kea casually replies. She snaps her fingers, a great idea popping into her head, "Hey! We should form our own club! The 'Loki tried to kill us' club! Of course if we did that then we'd all be in it, am I right?" Kea questions, enthusiastically throwing her arms out in front of her. She moves her eyebrows up and down.

Loki groans; slapping his hand to his forehead. "Oh great. A _female_ Pascal," he comments, "That's just what the world needs…more crazy," he completes, before gesturing over to his army of alien guards.

"Cease them!" Loki commands, stopping halfway across the room to pull out his most dangerous weapon: the death ray, "I'll take care of hero boy!" he growls, stopping when he notices Isabella trying to help him up. Loki charges forward, knocking Vidcund back onto the stairsteps; Isabella losing her grasp on him.

"Vid!" she shouts, attempting to reach him on the floor. Loki kicks her backward, knocking her into the basement wall once more. The impact causing her to shriek and fall back down to the floor.

"Isabella!" Vidcund shouts, reaching out for her.

"Nuh-uh-uh," Loki scolds him, "We can't have her getting in the way again now, can we?" he questions, yanking down a rope on the side of the basement. A pile of rocks falls from the door frame, blocking the others from the outside. "Now it's just you and me, boy," Loki says, staring his enemy straight in the eyes, "The city is mine. Just try and stop me!"


	11. Chapter 11: By Your Side

**Author's Note:** Where's the Romance? Here it is!

* * *

 **Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Eleven_

Pascal, Lazlo, and Kea back up against the wall as Loki's army of alien guards start to close in on them, blocking all possible exits. They all stop walking, noticing that they have been knocked back into a corner; alien guards surrounding them on all sides. "Well, it was nice knowing me," Pascal says, watching as all the alien guards take out their weapons and load them up.

Next to him, Lazlo is shaking, the intensity of this seemingly-doomed situation causing him to cave. "Alright, I'll admit it!" Lazlo blurts out, frantically scanning the area, "It was me! I was the one who broke the dishwasher!" he confesses.

"-We know," Pascal sighs, "You break ninety percent of the items in the house."

"I just can't help it, I'm sloppy!" Lazlo cries, turning to look at both his brother and Kea. Lazlo tilts his head; something about the situation is off. "Uh, why is she smiling?" Lazlo asks, pointing to Kea, who is smiling about a mile wide.

Pascal gazes at her in wonder, "Hey yeah, Kea. Why are you smiling?" he asks.

Kea looks forward, the smile not leaving her face. "No reason," she claims, still staring straight ahead.

All of a sudden, dozens of police officers burst through the doors and windows, their weapons aimed at the alien guards, outnumbering them without a doubt.

"Oh wait, _there's_ the reason!" Kea declares. Next to her, Pascal and Lazlo are standing shocked.

"You called the cops?" Pascal assesses.

"Of course not…I texted them!" Kea replies, watching as the police chief begins rounding up the alien guards, moving the army away from the three sims.

"You're under arrest for neighborhood treason!" Nervous Subject, the head of the police department, states. Pascal smiles when he sees him, giving his friend an excited wave. Nervous Subject nods in acknowledgement. Behind him, Isabella continues to dig through the large pile of rocks, trying to clear the path to get to her friend.

Kea shakes her head, watching as several alien guards get escorted out of the castle. "No one ever suspects the crazy chick!" she beams, standing triumphantly.

"Wait, but this wasn't part of the plan!" Lazlo speaks up, still standing there dumbfounded. Nearby, Pascal is untying the last of their allies.

"Psh, who has only one plan?" Kea says, rolling her eyes, "That's a recipe for failure!"

Tank laughs in happiness as Pascal releases him from the chair, standing up for the first time in what seemed like forever. "Yes! I am no longer a slave to sitting down!"

Next to him, Crystal stands up as well, rubbing the sides of her wrists where the chains once were. "I still don't get what happened," she speaks up, turning towards Kea, "I mean, how did you do that? I thought Loki disbanded the police force!" she recalls.

"-He did," Kea answers, "But when he took over the city, he could only get rid of the _Strangetown_ police force, not the tri-neighborhood police force."

"But how were you able to even get a hold of them?" Pascal asks, "I mean, don't they only come for vital situations?" he dives further.

"Patience dork, it will all be answered soon…in five minutes," Kea says, placing a gentle hand on both Pascal and Lazlo's shoulders, who are situated on either side of her, and giving them a pat, "The important thing is, we didn't die."

"Well, there's the shock of the century," Pascal states.

Nearby, Isabella is tossing rock after rock aside with all the strength that she has left. "Nervous!" Isabella cries out to the police chief, "Quick! You have to help me! Vidcund's in trouble!" she pleads, her face sweating as she attempts to catch her breath. Nervous Subject leans down next to the young girl.

"Where's Loki?" he asks.

"I think he's on the roof; he took Vid with him!" Isabella shouts.

Nervous Subject nods, reloading his weapon. "Okay. I'll go get him," he tells her before exiting out of the basement and rounding the castle's exterior.

Isabella is kneeling on the floor in front of the disclosed doorway, winded as she stares off into space. "He's never going to make it in time," she comments to herself. She slowly stands up, grabbing the sides of her body in pain. Isabella groans and tries to ignore it as she pushes herself further and continues moving rock after rock. A few feet away, Ripp is watching, puzzled and concerned by her dedication.

 _Meanwhile: On the Roof of the Beaker Estate_

Loki and Vidcund are on the roof of the three-story, medieval-style castle. Vidcund is slouched down, grabbing the side of his body in pain as Loki towers above him. "Well, well, well, if it isn't Vidcund Curious, my greatest rival," Loki begins, his hand on his hip triumphantly, "You know, I always knew that it would come to this. But I got to give you some credit – I didn't even think that you were going to make it this far – so congratulations for barely passing my pathetically low expectations."

"Look, I know it hurts, so why fight it?" Loki states, watching as Vidcund struggles to stand up straight, his side killing him. "You can give up now and save yourself a lot of trouble. I mean, we both know you're going to die anyway. And with my latest and greatest invention, you can die any death you'd like! And don't say 'old age' cause that isn't an option!" Loki growls, hoping to silence any chance of a sassy response from his enemy. "I'm not going to take any sass from no plant biologist!"

"You're a scar to the scientific community, Loki!" Vidcund retorts, "You've used science to kill hundreds of innocent sims for your own selfish motive! You don't even deserve to be called a man of science!"

Loki rolls his eyes, waving his hand in a brush-off. "Please! Science is a waste if it's not used for personal gain – for _evil_ ," he clarifies, "And that's why you'll always be a failure, Vidcund, cause you and your brothers waste all your time building stupid little gadgets, and they don't even work," Loki stresses his point, getting down in Vidcund's face, "For years I've watched you goof around, wasting the city's potential. So, I did what any good man would do, I took it from you fair and square and brought this city to the glory that it deserves!"

"What you're doing is sick!" Vidcund fights back, "You're using your power to establish a world where only you can thrive! A world with ultimate authority, where anyone who questions you 'disappears'!" Vidcund yells, "You're the real coward, hurting people and refusing to face what you did! You should've killed me when you had the chance, because now you're going to have blood on your hands, and you won't be able to talk your way out of this one!" Vidcund warns.

Vidcund stands up straighter, looking the dictator right in the eyes. "It was never about the power or the authority or the money for me, Loki. For me, being the mayor was about bettering peoples' lives. For me, it was about _Strangetown_ ," Vidcund confesses, stepping towards him, "And it kills me every day that you actually think that this city is yours."

Loki leans back, returning to a standing position, a cold glare blaring from his eyes. "This city is mine, Vidcund. Face the facts, I have won."

"If the city really is yours, then take it from me! I _dare_ you," Vidcund challenges, throwing his arms up towards him. Loki snarls and attacks Vidcund, knocking him to the floor as the pair get into an all-out fist fight. Vidcund pushes Loki back with his foot, causing the villain to fall to the floor.

Loki quickly gets up, glaring at his rival. "You fight like a girl, Curious! No wonder why Circe married me!" he counters, punching Vidcund in the gut. Vidcund punches him back, his facial expression softening as he looks down at his injured body.

"Look at this!" he exclaims, moving towards Loki, "Look at what you did to me! Tell me, was this worth it?" Vidcund shouts, turning his arms over so Loki can see all his cuts and bruises. "Does this make you happy?" Vidcund questions; Loki says nothing. "You stole my inventions, you beat me up, you took my girlfriend away from me. You captured my city, you tried to kill me and my brothers. You made my life a living hell!" Vidcund shouts, stopping as he collects his thoughts; his face mollifying, "But you know what? I'm sorry."

" _What_?"

Vidcund exhales, having a hard time facing what he had done. "What I did to you was classless and rude. I never should've done anything with Circe when you were married to her. You had something that I couldn't have, and I couldn't accept that, but now I do, so…I'm sorry," Vidcund apologizes once more as he gives off yet another sigh, "Izzy's right. Hatred gets you nowhere."

Loki sits up from the ground, uneasily eyeing Vidcund as he does so, his expression unreadable. After a moment of silence, Loki speaks up, towering over Vidcund. "Apology, the last resort for a doomed individual," Loki narrates, hatred returning to his voice, "Wow Vid, I didn't think it was possible, but I've lost even more respect for you as a human being… _I'm sorry_ ," Loki quotes mockingly. He kicks Vidcund with his black spiked boots, slamming him into the side of the roof. Vidcund falls to the floor and cries out, his midsection continuing to bleed. Loki paces towards him as Vidcund struggles to get up, the impact of the fall greatly damaging his body.

"Aww, what's the matter, Vid? Not enough half-assed apologies to save you?" Loki spits, ridiculing Vidcund as he moves towards him. He takes out the death ray and sets it to the highest setting, "Prepare to eaten by flies!" Loki declares as he aims the ray gun at him. Vidcund closes his eyes, bracing for the worst.

"Loki Beaker, you are under arrest for 1,265 counts of murder!" Nervous Subject shouts, climbing up the side of the castle and arresting him from behind. Nervous Subject wraps handcuffs around his wrists.

"Wait! You can't do this!" Loki exclaims, his expression filled with panic as he attempts to push himself away from Nervous, "I was just about to kill Vidcund!" he reasons.

"Okay then, 1,265 counts of murder and one count of attempted murder," Nervous Subject corrects himself. He rolls his eyes as he moves Loki back into the castle, "Man, they don't give me enough money to do this job," he grumbles.

Nervous leads Loki down the stairs and pushes him towards the door. They stop in the hallway as Nervous Subject pulls out his walkie talkie. "I got Loki; we're heading out," he informs the others.

"Oh no we're not!" Loki shoves Nervous in the side and bolts out the door, heading towards the Road to Nowhere.

"Get him!" Nervous Subject shouts to some of his officers, "We can't let him reach the border!"

Loki races towards the edge of the city, stopping when he comes face to face with none other than Crystal Vu, who is standing arms crossed at the edge of town.

"Loki Beaker, I suggest you surrender."

"Oh yeah?" Loki speaks up, clearly unintimidated by the ex-council member. "Give me one reason why I should."

Crystal shrugs, throwing her arms out. "Okay, but you asked for it." She states, taking out a weapon from her back pocket.

Loki narrows his eyes at her. "Big deal, townie. Do you really think I'm scared of you?"

"Well, if you're not scared of one townie, then how about three hundred?" a voice sounds from behind them. Loki turns around only to find a huge mob of college townies standing behind him, all led by Kea's friend, Curtis.

"You mess with one of us, you mess with us all!" Curtis informs him, "That's the great thing about townies, and it's clearly something that you don't understand!"

Loki steps back, the large amount of angry glares frightening him to the core.

"And if that's not enough reasons not to mess with my sister, I'll give you fifteen hundred!" Brent exclaims, standing on the wall with Breanna. Loki steps forward, eyeing all fifteen hundred sims that are aligning the city's border. "Surrender now, or we'll take the city back by force!" Brent warns.

Loki steps back, his body shaking. For once in his life, he is speechless.

…

Ripp, Tank, Pascal, Lazlo, and Kea have walked up from the basement and are watching as Nervous Subject grabs Loki and leads him to the police car. Nervous stops Loki in front of it, allowing for some parting words, as requested by Pascal Curious. "Aww, cheer up, Loki," Pascal says smiling, standing next to the car with his youngest brother, "You may have lost the war, but at least you didn't lose it to me – oh wait!"

Loki growls, punching Pascal in the face before Nervous Subject securely locks him up in the police car. "Ooh! Oh!" Pascal groans, rubbing his aching face, though he is still smiling about a mile wide. "That was totally worth it," he states. Lazlo nods.

A few moments later, the five of them return to the basement, gazing at the shattered remains of what once was Loki's dictatorial fortress. "Hey Kea, I just realized you never told us how you got in contact with the police force," Pascal says, turning back to her.

"Yeah," Lazlo seconds, "How were you able to get them to come here?"

"Well, I'll tell you," Kea begins, turning to face all that are listening, "You see, while I was at the police station during my senior year of college, I met a guy named Nervous Subject. He was training to be a chief. Even though he couldn't technically release me under the law, he helped make things a little bit easier for my trial. He got me a looser judge and he showed me this book about college townie cases that was a lifesaver filled with loopholes that he put in the trashcan in the interrogation room, knowing that there was a chance that one of my friends would eventually get taken there," Kea tells, stopping for a moment to take a breather.

"The week I was there, Nervous and I talked all the time," she continues, "Once he found out that I was friends with you, Pascal, he spilled all of the suspicions that he had about Circe and Loki. He said that he always suspected that Circe was after the city's money, but he didn't have any proof. Nervous said that if I could find physical proof that this whole charade was a scam, he could get the Simverse police to arrest them and we could get back the city no problem. Nervous gave me some clues as to where to find such proof in their estate, but made me promise not to tell anyone until I sent him a photo of it, and thanks to modern technology, I already did," she states.

"It took me all day, but I finally found what I was looking for," Kea reaches into her pocket and pulls out the envelope which she had taken from one of the file cabinets earlier. She hands it to Pascal, who scans over its contents.

"Yep, this is Olive Specter's will alright," Pascal concludes, reading towards the bottom. "Holy shit! According to this, it says that all of her money goes to Ripp Grunt!" he exclaims as all four of them look to the man in question.

Ripp steps forward, grabbing the will from Pascal and reading it over; his face frozen in shock. "Oh my gosh! You're right! So that's why they were trying to get rid of me!" he says, clarity filling his mind. Behind him, Isabella continues to move rocks from the entrance.

" _They_?" Lazlo repeats.

Kea nods, "Yeah, it was a two-man job. First, Loki took over the neighborhood to spite Vidcund, which I found out by following his Twitter," she explains, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a screenshot from her phone which reads: "Loki_Beaker3: Taking over the neighborhood to spite Vid. #GeniusIdeas."

Pascal looks at it and laughs. "Haha! He couldn't even get LokiBeaker1!"

"But Circe always had her eye on the financial loophole, which only got worse after they found out about Olive's will," Kea explains.

"Financial loophole?" Lazlo questions.

Kea nods, "Yeah, if you're in charge of the city then you gain access to all of the city's funds. You're supposed to use the funds to better the community, but obviously they weren't going to do that," Kea comments, "Anyway, whoever is in charge of the city is also responsible for reading the wills and distributing all of the money to the deceased sim's heirs," she explains, "Loki and Circe knew Olive was near death, so all they had to do was play the waiting game," Kea says, taking a pause.

"The plan actually started several years prior, when Circe took Nervous into their home, thinking that Olive's fortune was going to go to him. Then she seduced Vidcund to get a hold of the will to find out who the money was going to," Kea explains further, "When she found out the money wasn't going to Nervous – that it was actually set to go to Lyla – she kicked him out and made plans to take over the city," Kea tells them, "Knowing that people would grow suspicious if she ran, Circe pushed her husband into going for the position, using his hatred for Vidcund to fuel it. Shortly after Olive passed away and Loki got into office, Circe found out the money was going to go to Ripp, and that he only had a short time to claim it," she explains, "Now all she had to do was keep him out of the city long enough so that she could collect the funds. When the tactics failed, Circe realized that she needed a Plan B. So she got Loki to capture Ripp to restrain him in the basement. But obviously that ended up not working out for her!"

"So it was Circe…" Pascal begins, tapping his chin in wonder, "How did you know?"

"Good question, weirdo," Kea chimes, "I talked to a bunch of the townies before I left the house, and the one thing that everyone told me is that they were never sure if they could trust her. A lot of them suspected that she rigged the rebellion so that it would purposely fail," she says, "But believe it or not that wasn't the only thing that got me super suspicious. The whole time I was here, something just didn't sit right in my head. If Circe was really this heroic figure that she was making herself out to be, then why was Loki keeping her around? Loki's not an idiot; he's not going to let a traitor live freely in his house," she explains, capturing all of her friends' attentions.

"She also had seemingly no consequences for her actions! I mean, Crystal told me that she wasn't even tied up at the Grand Assembly after she had betrayed Loki twice!" she tells them, "The rebellion was another troublesome event. She took it over in no time flat, and instead of keeping it quiet to have a better success, she made a big show of it and proceeded to tell every city about her plan - making sure to add that she was going to take her 'lover's rightful spot on the throne.' She acted completely different in front of the public and the cameras that she knew about! Plus, didn't Lazlo say that Circe only started dating Vidcund again after he became mayor?"

"He did say that, yes," Pascal reaffirms the fact.

"Also, she did try to kill Isabella, and that woman oozes deceit!" Kea speaks up, "The whole Circe thing just didn't make sense. And if something doesn't make sense, then it usually isn't true – unless, of course, you're talking about me, then it probably is true," she states, smiling. Pascal laughs.

Next to him, Lazlo continues to ponder, taking all this new information in. "Wait, so you're telling me that Circe took advantage of Vidcund then used Loki as an scapegoat to win favor with the city to get the money?" he asks.

Kea nods, crossing her arms. "That's exactly what I'm saying."

"Fewf!" Lazlo breathes a sigh of relief, "Then it's good thing she's locked up now!" he says.

"Wait, didn't Vid release her?" Pascal questions, moving forward.

"Oh yeah," Lazlo remembers, "But come on, this is Circe weren't talking about. What's the worst that vengeful psychopath can do?" All five of them stand there for a few seconds, arms crossed, before the realization washes over them. Their eyes widen.

Behind them, Isabella's facial expression switches to pure panic. "Oh my gosh, Vid!"

 _Meanwhile: On the Roof of the Beaker Estate_

Vidcund moans as he moves his hands below his torso, attempting to lift his severely injured body from the pavement. He pulls his body forward, stopping when he notices a familiar pair of black leather shoes standing in front of him. Vidcund looks up, his eyes hurting from the beam of sunlight that is shining down over his ex-girlfriend's face. "Well, if it isn't Vidcund Curious," Circe begins, her facial expression sinister, "Have you come to witness the birth of my city?"

"Your city?" Vidcund repeats, clearly troubled, "What do you mean 'your city'?"

Circe lingers forward, a slight chuckle escaping from her lips, "Come on Vid, haven't you figured it out by now? This was never about you and me…the city is all that I've been after."

"Are you saying that you used me…all this time?" Vidcund says, squinting his eyes as he looks at her, his eyes drying out from the sun.

"I look out for _me_. You of all people should know that," Circe replies, pacing in a small circle on the roof as she continues to share her thoughts. "I love power and I love money, so I'd be stupid not to go after an opportunity like this! I gain your power, get Olive's fortune, and destroy the Slavestown Resistance without leaving any blood on my hands – it's pure genius!" Circe claims, "Loki takes the fall and gets arrested, and I take my rightful place as ruler of the city, sitting on a mountain of millions," Circe continues before stopping in front of her ex-lover, "There's just one problem – you're still alive – and to succeed in my ultimate plan, I need to get rid of the only thing that stands between me and the throne – and that's you, Vidcund," Circe confesses.

"The plan is genius, really," Circe begins. She leans down and stares directly at him, seeing despair completely wash over him as she takes the death ray out of her back pocket, anxiously gripping her hand around it, "I'll kill you with Loki's weapon, you'll die, I'll pretend to mourn you for a few weeks, then I'll run for office and get all the pity votes."

"-The residents won't believe you," Vidcund counters, finding the ounce of confidence still within him.

"Oh really?" Circe answers, cocking an eyebrow, "They won't believe a woman who was supposedly pushed around by her abusive husband and sought the arms of a man who truly loved her?" she claims before changing her mannerisms completely. Circe brings her hands up towards her face in an innocent prayer position, tears forming in her eyes, as her voice shifts to a tone of innocence, "'Oh Vidcund, my beloved fiancé, I loved him so much…and now he's gone! I'll never stop the pain that fills my fragile heart – if only I had something to help sooth my aching soul…'" she acts out, swiftly turning back to normal; an evil smirk forming on her face as she flashes the stolen ring on her finger.

Vidcund's eyes widen a bit, trying to calm the doubts that are forming rapidly in his mind. "That won't work on everyone!" he claims, "Some people already know the truth!"

"True, but they're all a bunch of stupid townies, so no one will believe them anyway, especially since they have no proof," Circe says, brushing away the very thought, "Face it Vidcund, my plan is foolproof!"

"I don't understand, I thought you loved me," Vidcund confesses, looking down at the pavement, unable to meet Circe's eyes, "I mean, what about the tape? You looked so sad when you were talking about what Loki did to me!"

"Oh _that_?" Circe recalls, brushing it off once more, "That was just a show for the camera!" she exclaims, leaning down in his face, "Now you know how I _really_ feel."

"And the baby?" Vidcund continues, not wanting to know the answer, but he knew that he would have to face the truth eventually.

Circe shrugs, "She was an accident… _unfortunately_."

Vidcund moves his head back, the pain of this confession hurting him more than the burn he is getting from the sun. The energy drains out of his body as he struggles to even lift his head up to look at her, his heart filling with despair. "But…don't you love me?" he squeaks, barely able to push the words out.

Circe rolls her eyes, "Please! I love power, especially if it's easy to obtain, and that's exactly what you had. So I used you to get what I wanted. If you had any brains at all, you should've seen it coming!" she exclaims, taking another large step towards him, "After all, Vidcund, no one could ever love you for real," she claims, placing her foot on top of his back and pushing him down. Vidcund moans, his eyes filling up with tears.

"You're so weak, Vidcund," Circe continues to bash him, "You're a coward, and you'll always be a loser! This whole thing? This is all your fault! And there's not a person alive that would stand by you."

All of a sudden, static blares out from Vidcund's headset as someone comes on the line. _"Vid? Vid?"_ Isabella's voice rings into his ear, _"I stole Pascal's headset! I'm coming up for you!"_

Hearing her voice, Vidcund quickly sits up, his voice filled with fearful gusto. "No! Stay back! It's too dangerous!"

Three levels down, Isabella stands in the basement near the pile of removed rocks, pondering what to do. Her body aches forward as a sudden urge bolts through her body. _"Go get him!"_ her conscience rings inside of her as Isabella reaches down and removes the final rock from the once-blocked doorway. Isabella jumps over the discarded rocks and bolts up the stairs.

Across the room, Ripp reaches out to Isabella. "Izzy, no!" he calls out, attracting the attentions of her other friends. Ripp jumps over the rocks and runs after her; Kea, Tank, Pascal, and Lazlo following close behind.

"Nervous, quick! Call for back up!" Pascal screams into his phone.

Above them, on the roof, Circe is leaning forward preparing to strike. She shakes her head at his pitiful body. "Poor Vidcund," she mocks, "I almost feel sorry for you. Your pathetic little soul will never know the feeling of true love-"

Vidcund perks up a bit as he watches his life flash before his very eyes…

…

The scene shows Circe and Vidcund in middle school. Vidcund is standing on the front porch of his parents' brown ranch-style house, holding a pink orchid behind his back. He has just asked Circe to be his girlfriend, something of which she has gladly accepted.

"I love you, Vidcund," a young Circe sweetly says, gazing deeply into his eyes, "We'll be together forever…"

The scene flashes to Vidcund and Circe's senior prom, where the entire twelfth grade is surronding Vidcund. Everyone – Circe included – is pointing and laughing at his wet pants.

"Your life is over, Vidcund!" Loki says, pointing and laughing at him, "You're done!"

Vidcund runs out of the hall, his face red in embarrassment.

The scene then flashes to Loki and Circe's wedding day. Vidcund is standing above the Strangetown crater watching as Circe says her vows down below, loving holding Loki's hands.

"Congratulations! You may now kiss the bride!" the priest announces from below as dozens of residents cheer. Vidcund steps back from the crater, tears filling his eyes, the ceremony being too much for him to bear.

…

Five years later, Vidcund is getting thrown into an unmarked van with Pascal and Lazlo after getting beaten up by Loki. Vidcund is so weak that he can barely stand – his entire body bruised and beaten.

"Vid!" Pascal cries out when he sees him, racing over to catch him from falling.

Vidcund blacks out.

" _This is it. It's over. We're done for,"_ Vidcund tells his brothers later that day, _"Even if someone were to find us, there's no way that anyone would be willing to risk their lives to save the worst enemies of the most powerful man in Strangetown - it would be a death sentence! Anyone who tries would be as good as done…"_

…

Vidcund groans as he watches his older brother stick his wristwatch out the cell window, attempting to attract the attention of someone outside. "Pascal, give it up. There's no way we're going to be able to get out of this!" he states, moping around below him.

"No! We're not going down like this!" Pascal exclaims, aiming his watch out on the pavement as he stands up on a nearby ledge, "This is not going to be the end of me, and this sure as hell is not going to be the end of him!" he shouts, pointing down at his stomach. "Lazlo?" Pascal says, slowly getting off the ledge and holding his watch out to his brother.

"Hey! Someone's coming!" Lazlo whisper-exclaims from inside of the cell in the abandoned warehouse. He is sitting crouched down in front of the iron bars as Pascal moves in next to him, intently watching the girl that has just walked into the building. Vidcund is sulking behind the pair. "She looks nice; harmless," he notes.

Vidcund continues to stare at the floor, not bothering to lift a finger. "If she's harmless, then she's no help to us," he coldly states.

"Come on, you don't know that!" Lazlo says, turning back to him, "Maybe she's one of those rare people that can break a concrete wall down with just her foot!" Pascal and Vidcund both look at Lazlo, their eyebrows raised in disbelief. "What?" he questions.

Pascal sighs and turns his pregnant body around, glaring at his blonde-haired brother. "So Mr. Downer, any idea of who this girl is?" he asks him. "She's got red hair and a pink, girly-looking outfit."

Vidcund shrugs, "It's probably Alban's daughter. I don't know what her name is," he claims, noticing that Pascal is looking at him shocked, "They're relatively new residents!" he says.

"Huh," Lazlo speaks up, still watching the young college student, "Maybe she's the nice one."

"-Or maybe she's the psychotic one that has a collection of gnomes in her basement!" Vidcund alerts them, his attitude sour.

Pascal nods, slowly standing up from his place on the concrete floor. "Well, there's only one way to find out," Pascal brings his hands up to his face and takes a deep breath, preparing to shout.

Vidcund stands up, moving his hand out in front of his older brother. "Don't call her over here! What's she going to do…?"

…

"So this is my room!" Isabella says, holding her arms out and giving a small twirl, presenting her dorm room to the Curious brothers. "You guys can stay with me!" she tells them as the three of them enter through the door behind her, "There's food over there," she says, pointing towards the mini fridge and her small, pink plastic bin filled with snacks.

"Sweet!" Lazlo exclaims, nudging Pascal in the side.

"And Pascal, you can sleep on my bed cause you're pregnant," Isabella offers him.

"Sweeter!" Pascal seconds, plopping down on the bed.

Isabella twirls back towards Vidcund, "And we'll figure out some way the three of us can all sleep in here," she informs him. Isabella smiles at Vidcund, although he continues to stare at her with his arms crossed, finding her whole cheerful demeanor surprisingly suspicious.

"So, what's the catch?" Vidcund asks.

"Excuse me?" Isabella answers, clearly confused.

"What do you want? Money? Power?" Vidcund questions further, attempting to analyze her motives, "Come on, you gotta want something. Nobody does something this big without expecting anything in return."

Isabella genuinely smiles, seemingly unfazed by Vidcund's accusations. "You know Vidcund, this may surprise you, but sometimes people do things just because they're nice."

"Oh, you've got a lot to learn, kid," Vidcund counters, stepping into her room.

Suddenly, Isabella pulls him back, looking directly into his eyes. "You're one tough cookie, Vid," she states, her eyes shining, "But I can get through to you."

Vidcund looks up at her, a scowl still on his face. "Don't get your hopes up."

…

The scene flashes to Vidcund and Isabella staying up late one night, sitting on the carpet of her dorm room, laughing and conversing as they bond with one another. Vidcund picks up the painting that Isabella had completed the previous night and scans it over.

"You know, I don't understand art," he says, gazing up from Isabella's purple and green hued landscape painting, "But I would like to," Vidcund tells her with a smile. Isabella beams.

…

" _You're clueless, Vid,"_ Pascal's voice rings in his mind, _"You wouldn't know love if it was right in front of your face!"_

…

His mind floats to a familiar scene where Vidcund is lying behind Isabella on the queen-sized cot one night in Cassandra's dormitory. Vidcund begins to restlessly stir behind her as he gives off a small moan. He reaches his arm out, wraps his arm around her waist, and pulls her close, cuddling her. "Mmm…you're the girl for me," Vidcund confesses, a warm feeling washing over his body. Vidcund smiles as Isabella lays there for a moment before slowly snuggling back into his arms.

…

Two weeks later, the pair is sitting in Isabella's bedroom one evening after leaving early from Kea's giant celebration party, conversing on the floor with no one else in sight. The room is dark except for one small lamp on Isabella's nightstand, which is dimly lighting up the room with a soft pink hue. "You know what I liked the most about senior year?" Isabella asks him as she fiddles with her carpet.

"What?" Vidcund wonders.

Isabella smiles as she shyly looks up at him, "That I got to meet you."

…

Vidcund swiftly and delicately leads Isabella to the center of the dance floor and wraps his arms around her. The pair sway their bodies back and forth in a rather intimate slow dance.

Isabella unexpectedly moves forward and hugs him, wrapping her arms tightly around him as they continue to dance, their chests now touching. Vidcund sighs, regaining his composure as he wraps his arms around her small frame and hugs her back, liking the way she feels against him.

…

" _When I looked down at my body, and I saw what he did to me – I was so filled with hatred,"_ Vidcund confides in Isabella, recalling the day that Loki had beat him up and left him for dead, _"But it wasn't at him, it was at myself for letting my whole world slip through my fingers without a fight."_

…

"Oh god, what have I done?" Vidcund states, feeling as if the entire situation is falling on top of him, "I've endangered or destroyed everything and everyone I care about!" he exclaims, "Do you have any idea what's like to see something crumble before your very eyes, knowing that you caused it?" he asks, "I mean, if it weren't for my brothers, I wouldn't have a friend in the world."

"That's not true. You have me," Isabella says, delicately placing her hand on top of his, staring straight into his eyes, "And it's not just your mess anymore. It's our mess," she explains, the touch of her hand causing Vidcund to look up as well, tears streaming down his face. "If we're going down, then we're going down together."

He sniffs, "Your loyalty to me is insane," Vidcund states, "I hope you don't come to hate me later on like everyone else," he adds.

…

Vidcund, Pascal, and Lazlo are standing in Isabella's dorm room one morning while Isabella is away at class. Vidcund is holding the rolled up battle plans while conversing with his brothers. "In a few weeks we will be heading straight into what is already the deadliest war in Strangetown history," Vidcund explains, pacing a bit in front of them, "but as God as my witness, nothing bad will happen to Isabella eXtreme."

"Right," Pascal agrees with Lazlo nodding as well. The three of them shake on it, hoping to even the score for her saving them from death.

…

Pascal carefully watches his younger brother walk into the dorm room, a smug smile spreading on his face as he leans up against the back wall of the tiny dorm room, his arms crossed. "You like Izzy," he states.

"Yeah, she's great, we're good friends," Vidcund quickly responds, his concentration elsewhere as he continues to look through the items on Isabella's desk.

Pascal steps forward, leaning closer to his younger brother. "You don't just like her, you like-like her," he adds, making his voice slightly higher.

Vidcund turns around, clearly irritated. "What are you, four?"

"I'm old enough to see that you clearly have a thing for her," Pascal says, pointing his finger in Vidcund's face, watching as he rolls his eyes, "Admit it Vidcund, you like Izzy."

Vidcund crosses his arms, undoubtedly annoyed, "No, I don't."

…

Vidcund sits down next to Isabella on the roof of Cassandra's dorm; the pair silent for several moments after Ripp and Isabella's massive break-up. After a while, Vidcund turns to Isabella, his blue eyes shining.

"Isabella, listen to me. You just dive into things. And it's reckless, and it's amazing," he notes, "But you need to start seeing yourself as more than just someone's girlfriend. And that's something you're going to have to do on your own," Vidcund speaks, staring down at his friend.

Isabella sighs, "I know," she answers, her eyes to the concrete as she hangs her feet over the side of the roof. "But what if no one ever loves me again?" she asks, gazing up at him. Vidcund shakes his head lightly.

"I don't think you'll have to worry about that," he states, his expression soft; his eyes shining. He cannot take his eyes off of her.

…

A couple weeks later, Vidcund is inside of one of the safe house guest rooms, preparing to go off to war. Lazlo is watching from the dark green suede chair next to him as Vidcund attaches as many inventions as he can to his coat. After a few moments, Vidcund stops, turning away as he lets out a large sigh, therapeutically running his fingers through his hair.

"Look, I gotta tell you something," Vidcund opens up, turning to face his brother, "The truth is…I kinda have a crush on Izzy," Vidcund confesses, finding the right words to say, "Am I crazy?"

Lazlo shakes his head, knowingly, "Nope. You're good," he reassures him.

…

" _I had everything,"_ Vidcund narrates, voicing over in his head, _"I had the job, I had the house, I had the girl. But then I lost it all, and now I find myself hiding out in a college student's dorm room with my two brothers and a girl that seems too good to be true. And honestly, I've never been happier."_

…

Vidcund and Isabella turn to one another, giving a nod of confidence before staring back at the water below. The pair slowly stands, adjusting their boots on the fence so that they can properly launch off. Vidcund turns to Isabella, holding out his hand. Isabella slowly takes it, the two of them jumping off the gate at the same time and landing into the bluish green water.

…

Vidcund and Isabella are sitting on the roof of Cassandra's dormitory one night at three in the morning, after everyone else has gone to sleep. They are gazing out at the stars. "I guess when you're in a relationship, and you put so much of yourself into it, you get caught up in all of the emotions that you're feeling and sometimes you start to see things that were never really there," Vidcund explains, staring off into the distance. Next to him, Isabella is paying attention to every word, "Circe didn't love me, I know that," he reveals, pouring his heart out to his friend, "If she really loved me, then I would've been her husband," Vidcund continues, stopping for a moment, his eyes filling with tears, "-And I'm not."

Vidcund sighs and rests his head down on his knees as he wraps both of his arms around them. Next to him, Isabella is filled with sorrow for him, Vidcund's words hitting her right in the chest. "I guess I'm just unlovable…" Vidcund speaks into the silence.

Isabella scoots forward, her eyes shining as she lightly touches his hand, her face warm. Vidcund looks up at her upon feeling her touch. "You, unlovable?" Isabella says suddenly, smiling, "Now that's _impossible_."

Vidcund gazes up at the young college student, giving a small smile of gratitude as tears form in his eyes.

…

Back in the present time, Vidcund is sitting crouched down on the pavement, Circe about to strike. Vidcund gazes up a bit, a good, comforting feeling washing over him as a newfound realization hits him square in the chest, the pieces of his life all coming together to form one resounding message that is now screaming at the top of its lungs.

"Oh my gosh," Vidcund begins, a cheerful expression in his eyes as his voice fills with astonishment, "I love Isabella."

A few staircases down, Isabella is racing to the top of the roof, every part of her body aching with each step that she climbs. The whole world around her starts to move in slow motion as she closes in on the top of the estate, the scene blurring in front of her very eyes.

Isabella treks forward, finding herself drawn to Vidcund as she watches Circe towering over him, the words of the Gypsy Matchmaker racing through her mind:

" _You will win the war, but it will be at a terrible price,"_ Margaret warns, _"One of you two won't make it out alive."_

Circe leans down, smiling wide as she presses the yellow button on the death ray. "And now, my dear Vidcund, this electric sword is the only thing that stands between life and _your_ death!"

Circe pulls back and swings her arms forward, preparing to strike.

"NOOOOO!" Isabella shouts, throwing herself in front of him, her body taking the final blow.

Ripp reaches the top of the staircase, watching as Isabella takes the hit, electrical waves surrounding her entire body. The waves engulf her completely before striking the young girl in the heart. Ripp watches in horror as electricity takes yet another one of his beloved sims' lives, his heart dropping, then breaking. Isabella collapses down in front of Vidcund, her body limp.

"Izzy?" Ripp calls out, "IZZY!" Ripp shouts louder, kneeling down next to her as Pascal, Lazlo, Tank, and Kea race up next to him. Behind them, Nervous Subject is handcuffing Circe. She laughs maniacally.

"Good luck marrying her when she's dead!" she shouts, giving them an evil smirk. Nervous Subject takes her away.

Tank, Kea, Pascal, and Lazlo step forward, somber expressions on their faces as they watch Ripp frantically shake Isabella by the shoulders. "Isabella! Isabella, wake up!" Ripp commands her, though at this point it sounds more like a plea, "Come on! We have to get home!" he cries, his voice filled with desperation, "We have to start our life together!"

Isabella doesn't move.


	12. Chapter 12: Just Like Them

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Twelve_

Tank and Kea turn to each other, exchanging devastated looks with one another, before Tank steps forward and walks over to his brother. Tank crouches down on the roof next to Ripp, placing a consoling hand on his shoulder.

"Ripp-" he begins, reaching out to him.

Ripp immediately stands up, his body now filling with anger. He points at Vidcund, who is still lying down on his side attempting to lift himself up. Vidcund can't even look Ripp in the face.

" _You_!" Ripp shouts accusingly, "This is all your fault! If you would've just manned up, taken the punishment like you were supposed to, and done your own dirty work, my girlfriend wouldn't be dead!" Ripp screams.

Vidcund moves his head down, his eyes swollen, deeply hurt by Ripp's comment as more and more guilt continues to drench over him. Kea steps in front of Vidcund, looking Ripp intensely in the eyes.

"Ripp, it was Isabella's choice to go after him," she reminds him, "He warned her not to. It was her decision to save him."

"What the hell is wrong with you, Kea?!" Ripp storms, throwing his arms up, "Why are you defending someone who basically killed your best friend? You're such a traitor!" he yells.

"Ripp," Tank speaks warningly, wedging himself between his brother and Kea, "Cool it before I punch you in the face," he threatens. "Look, I know you're hurt, but playing the blame game isn't going to bring Izzy back," he claims, "Besides, Isabella wouldn't want us fighting with each other, she'd want all of us to stick together and get through this."

Ripp wanders back a bit, stopping as he looks down at Isabella's lifeless body that is sprawled out on the floor. He bursts into tears once more. "No! NO!" he mourns, crying into his hands.

"It's okay," Pascal speaks up, "We can always resurrect her with the Resurrect-O-Nomitron...and I just remembered it broke this morning," Pascal completes, "Damn it!" he curses, snapping his fingers.

Suddenly, a red, foggy smoke cloud pops up in the center of the roof as a black-cloaked sim appears in the middle of it, one of his boney hands raised upwards towards the sky. Lightning strikes the roof as the NPC steps out towards them.

"Oh my gosh, it's the Grim Reaper!" Pascal exclaims, nudging Lazlo in the side and lowering his voice to a whisper, "I've never seen him in person before."

The Grim Reaper floats over to Isabella, carrying a scythe in his hand. He stops at her body, shaking his head in pity as he takes out a clipboard from seemingly nowhere and begins to write on it, all the other sims watching his every move.

"Uh, Mr. Reaper, sir?" Ripp says, cautiously walking over to him. The Grim Reaper looks up, "Do you have to take Isabella?" he asks softly.

"Sorry kid," the Grim Reaper answers, still writing down a few more lines on the notes section of his clipboard, "You can try pleading, but there's only a fifty percent chance that you would win."

"Oh," Ripp squeaks, looking down at the ground in sorrow as the Grim Reaper starts to turn away.

"Wait, Stan!" Kea chimes, racing over to them, "Do you really have to take Izzy's life?" she asks.

The Grim Reaper glances up and stops what he's doing when he sees the blonde-haired, silver-eyed townie arrive in front of him. "Why Kea Kalson, isn't this a surprise?" Stan comments, his pen disappearing into dust with the wave of his hand, "I didn't expect to see you here."

"You know him?" Pascal asks, intrigued.

"Of course I know him," Kea replies, "He and I play poker together every Thursday!" she answers as if it is obvious, "But as I was saying – Stan, do you really have to take my best friend's soul? I mean, she's a nice sim with a good heart. Cute face, killer body," Kea describes as Tank and Ripp look at each other strangely, "-And she was only trying to save the city!"

Below them, Vidcund gives a horrendous groan before flopping down on the pavement next to Isabella's dead body.

"Oh my gosh, Vid!" Pascal cries, running over to his brother and picking up his body. Pascal kneels, holding his brother in his arms as Lazlo rushes over to them, filled with worry.

"Oh, he was so beautiful," Pascal mourns, his eyes watering as he stares over-dramatically at the heavens, "Only second to me!" he cries before kneeling back over him and sobbing uncontrollably as memories of his brother begin seeping into his mind.

...

Kitty, Jenny and the Curious Brothers' mother, is lying down in a hospital bed at Strangetown General Hospital, holding a small bundle in her arms. She looks tiredly over at a young four-year-old Pascal, who is bouncing up and down at the side of the cot holding onto the handrail. "Pascal," Kitty speaks soothingly, "This is your brother," she tells him, moving closer to him so Pascal can see, "What do you think?"

Pascal curiously leans forward and squints his eyes, staring at the pale, blue-eyed baby that is wrapped up in a blue blanket in her arms. Vidcund hiccups. "I like him!" Pascal chimes, a smile spreading on his face.

…

Six years later, Pascal is sitting in the optometrist's office, intently gazing at his new glasses in the mirror. Kitty, Vidcund, and Lazlo are sitting there with him. "I can't go to school looking like this!" Pascal cries, throwing his hands up over his face and over his thick rounded glasses, "All of the other kids will make fun of me!"

Vidcund races over to the shelf behind his older brother and picks up a pair of green tinted glasses. "No they won't, they'll make fun of me!" Vidcund says, pushing his signature orange rimmed glasses onto his face, "Cause my glasses are goofier than yours!" Vidcund declares. Pascal looks up at him and gives a shy smile.

…

"Hey look! Vid wet his pants!" a teenaged Loki calls out, pointing to a mortified Vidcund at prom. Around him, everyone erupts into laughter as Vidcund steps back attempting to conceal himself, his face red with embarrassment.

Seeing this, Pascal goes over to the punch table and grabs a cup of lemonade, purposely throwing it on his own trousers. "Look! I wet my pants, too!" Pascal announces, walking over to the crowd. The teenagers turn and laugh at Pascal instead.

The next day, Vidcund is hiding under the covers in his room, refusing to come out after Circe dumped him. Pascal knocks on the door before walking over and sitting down on Vidcund's bed.

"You know Vid, you'll only be embarrassed for maybe a week tops. But Loki? He's going to be embarrassing himself for the rest of his life," Pascal states, trying to console him.

Hearing this, Vidcund pops his head out from underneath the pale blue bed covers and looks at Pascal, giving a small smile. "You really think so?" he asks.

Pascal nods. "Yeah, I mean come on! Have you _seen_ the mustache?"

Vidcund laughs. "Right," he replies, "How could I forget that?" Pascal nods as the room grows silent around them. "Thanks Pascal," Vidcund speaks into the silence.

Pascal smiles, "No problem."

…

A few months later, all the teenagers in Strangetown are gathered outside of Strangetown Middle School watching as Loki pushes Pascal down in the dirt, following Pascal's failed attempt to kiss Circe.

"Geez Curious, you fight like a girl!" Loki remarks, watching as Pascal struggles to get the dirt out of his mouth.

All of a sudden, Vidcund runs forward, tackling Loki to the ground. The pair get into an all-out fist fight. "Vid!" Pascal shouts, watching as the recess monitors race over to the pair of fighters, frantically blowing their whistles.

"Stop it! Stop it you two!" one of the monitors yells, "This incident is going on your permanent records!" she scolds them.

A few hours later, Pascal catches Vidcund as he is walking out of the principal's office.

"I don't get it, Vid," Pascal begins, carefully adjusting the books in his hands, "Why did you do it? The fight didn't have anything to do with you."

"I know," Vidcund answers, "I did it because I didn't you to mess up your life. We all know that you're the gifted one in the family, Pascal. You're destined for great things," Vidcund tells him, "And I didn't want you to throw it all away on some stupid fight."

"But now Sim University won't accept you," Pascal informs him.

Vidcund shrugs, "Eh. I'll go someplace else."

Pascal tilts his forehead, still deeply confused by his brother's chill reaction, "But it was your dream," he reiterates.

Vidcund shrugs once again, "I'll find another one," he states, slowly walking backwards a few steps before taking off down the hallway. Pascal meaningfully watches Vidcund, pondering what he has just done for him.

…

Ten years later Pascal is standing at a podium at the Nobel Prize ceremony in Pleasantview, giving his victory speech to his fellow scientific peers. Vidcund and Lazlo are watching him from the side of the stage. "I have a lot of people that I would like to thank for this," Pascal talks into the microphone, "But first, I would like to thank my brother, Vidcund," Pascal says, turning to the right and locking eyes with him, "Who looked out for me, when no one else did…"

An hour later, Pascal meets up with his brothers backstage. "I'll never forget what you did for me, Vid," Pascal says, "I'll pay you back someday."

Vidcund shakes his head, waving his hand in front of his body. "You don't have to do that," he tells him, "We're even."

…

Later that same year, Pascal is standing at the head of the Strangetown council, glancing down at two of his fellow council members – Crystal Vu and Charles Lawson – who are both looking at the resignation notice that is on the table in front of them.

"Olive's retiring and we need a new leader," Pascal firmly states, his hands on the edge of the mahogany table, "I say we appoint Vidcund for mayor of the city of Strangetown. All in favor, say aye."

"Aye!" all three of them respond.

"Great! Then it's settled," Pascal says, picking up the resignation papers, "I'll nominate him at the meeting tomorrow."

…

One year later, pounding is heard at the front door of the Curious residence. Vidcund opens up the door, only to find a mob of angry scientists crowded on their front porch. "Uh, may I help you…?" Vidcund asks, attempting to calm down the crowd who is all voicing separate complaints to him simultaneously.

"Your brother, Pascal, is a disgrace to the scientific community!" the oldest and loudest scientist shouts, "His terrible actions will ruin us all!" he yells.

Vidcund cocks his eyebrow, clearly puzzled. "I have no idea what you guys are talking about, but I can assure you that there is nothing wrong with Pascal-"

"Uh, Vid? Can I see you for a minute?" Pascal says, poking his head out from behind the hallway wall.

"Sure," Vidcund answers, nonchalantly slamming the door in the scientists' faces.

Vidcund joins Pascal in the kitchen and takes a seat in front of the television. He watches as his older brother paces around the room, disheveled and stressed. "What's up?" Vidcund asks.

"Look, I know why they're upset," Pascal responds, continuing to pace in front of him, "And I have to tell you something, and I'm not sure how you're going to take it, so I'm just going to come out and say it."

Vidcund nods, encouraging him to proceed, "Alright."

"Vidcund, I'm pregnant," Pascal tells him, stopping to throw his hands up, "And I'm pretty sure I'm bi."

Vidcund moves his head up and down for a few moments and says nothing. Pascal watches as Vidcund slowly gets up from his chair and walks over to him. All at once, Vidcund leans forward and hugs him. Pascal sighs in relief before wrapping his arms around him, returning the embrace.

…

In present time, Pascal continues to mourn, holding his brother's body in his arms. "Vid! Vid! VID!" Pascal cries, bursting into tears all over again. Behind him, the Grim Reaper is shaking his head.

"Geez kid, relax," Stan speaks suddenly, "Your brother's not dead, he's just traumatized."

"Oh yeah?" Pascal says, glaring at Death accusingly, "What are you, a doctor?"

Stan sighs, pulls a business card out of his robe, and hands it to him. The card reads: "Andrew Stanley Cubinski – Grim Reaper & M.D., 'I can manage your life _and_ death!'"

Pascal takes the card from him and awes, pleasantly surprised by this rather peculiar news. "Ooh," he coos before gently placing down his brother and turning towards Death. "But really, please don't take Isabella. She's one of the few people that can actually tolerate me!" Pascal exclaims, grabbing Stan by the cloak and pulling him up towards his face, "Do you have any idea how tough that is?!"

Stan looks down, eyeing the crazed look on Pascal's face. "Er, I have an idea," he claims; Pascal lets go of him.

The Grim Reaper steps back, scanning over the five sims that are standing in front of him. "Look, I can see how much you guys care about your friend and how much Pascal cares about his brother," Stan adds, "So I'll make you a deal," he begins, preparing to offer a wager, "I'll heal Vidcund up for free, but the girl is going to cost you."

"Do you want Loki? Cause if you want Loki, you can take him," Pascal quickly offers.

"Er…no," Stan answers, shaking his head, hoping to dismiss the very thought, "But if you want Isabella back, then you're going to have to play me for her!"

"Uh-huh," Lazlo says, stepping forward, "And what exactly do you have in mind?"

Stan glances at Kea knowingly as he reaches into his cloak and pulls out a handful of pink powder. He gazes up at the others, throwing his hand up towards the sky. "Oh, _you'll see_ ," Stan forewarns, flinging the powder to the floor.

 _Meanwhile: In Some Strange Unknown Location Above The Simverse_

Isabella groans, her mind and body going a thousand different places, until suddenly - it stops. Isabella's hands trail up to her face, which now feels almost like porcelain. She runs her hands against the smooth texture for what feels like a few moments before pulling them back down. She holds her hands up at eye level and examines them thoroughly, astonished that they are not covered in blood. The pain that once agonized her body a short while ago has disappeared completely.

Isabella turns around finding nothing but pure white light around her. Isabella steps forward, her body filling with fear as she examines the unfamiliar setting surrounding her body. She looks down, a path of clouds making up the entire floor beneath her. Above them rests a single desk that is lined with gold. Isabella blinks a few times, now realizing that she is standing in a line that is leading up to what seems to be the entrance of the afterlife. Isabella nervously rubs her arm as she glances at the pair of gold-iron gates that are standing a few meters away from her.

All of a sudden, the clerk looks up from her desk, her eyes meeting Isabella's. " _You_. Come here," the clerk speaks, adjusting her red rimmed glasses which matches the red heart pin that is attached to her pure white pantsuit.

" _Me_?" Isabella squeaks, placing a gentle hand on her chest. The clerk nods.

Isabella slowly steps forward; the sims lined up in front of her move out of the way, watching her every move. Isabella gulps, more terrified with each step that she takes. At last, she reaches the front desk. She cautiously smiles at the clerk. "Hello," she greets.

The clerk looks through the papers on her clipboard before pressing a yellow button that is on the side of the cloud wall. "Jules?" the clerk speaks, "The girl who saved the mayor is here."

"'Kay," Jules answers back, "Send her in."

The clerk gestures Isabella towards the entrance of the gates, lifting her hand off the buzzer. Isabella moves back towards them, but stops before she reaches the golden gates.

"Uh, may I ask what's going on?" Isabella says, playing a bit with her shaky hands.

The clerk sighs, not bothering to look up from her paperwork. "You're dead," she states bluntly.

"What?!" Isabella outbursts, "No, I can't be dead! This wasn't supposed to happen! I mean, it was according to Margaret, but-"

"Ah," the clerk states, clearly getting a kick out of this conversation, "Is that why you weren't fighting back?" she asks. Isabella stands in silence, the wind completely knocked out of her. The clerk smiles and looks the young girl over. "That's okay. He wasn't fighting back either," the clerk informs her, making eye contact with Isabella. "To be honest kid, we were expecting the mayor today – his name's been on the New Arrivals list for a few months now," she tells Isabella, "But a couple of hours ago, the list regenerated, his name disappeared, and yours showed up in its place. Normally we don't like people messing with the system – but, I think we'll live," the clerk comments, a smile forming on her face at this rather ironic statement, "Besides, there's someone here that's been er, _dying_ to meet you," the clerk explains.

"Really?" Isabella says, moving forward, "Who?"

The clerk points her pen at a woman who is standing on the other side of the golden gates, waiting for her. Isabella nods, giving the clerk a small wave before walking towards the figure – the woman's features becoming more prominent the closer Isabella gets to her. The woman has blonde hair and milky brown eyes. By the looks of her face, she appears to be middle aged. Isabella guesses that she is probably a mother, based on the tired circles that are under her eyes. Though despite Isabella's speculation, the woman is dressed quite formal and is wearing a pure white ball gown with her hair tied up in an elegant bun. Isabella looks down at her own attire, now noticing that her classic pink shirt and gray argyle skirt are pure white as well. Isabella looks back up at the woman, stopping a few feet in front of her. She doesn't know why, but for some reason she looks vaguely familiar.

"Hello," the woman greets, giving the young college graduate a nod.

Isabella gives a shy smile, "Hi," she greets back.

"So you're Isabella," the woman says, leading Isabella further into the clouds, the golden gate closing behind them, "I've been watching you for a while," she states, stopping when she notices the strange look that is shining on Isabella's face, "Don't be creeped out, watching living sims is one of the most popular pastimes in the afterlife – and they're pretty exclusive with what you see."

"Oh," Isabella states, walking next to her. Isabella finds the woman's presence warm and comforting.

The woman smiles, "I first started paying attention to you when you started dating Ripp," she tells her, "But I don't have to reminisce further on that, I'm sure you remember your own life."

"Yeah," Isabella answers, still finding it rather hard to talk about her ex.

The pair continues forward. "Then I watched you go to college and befriend Tank. I know he was a bit difficult at first, but I'm really proud of the person that he's become," the woman comments, "I appreciate you looking out for them, especially since, you know, I couldn't," the woman informs her, "So I just wanted to meet you so I could thank you for that."

The pair stops walking as they reach what appears to be some sort of light-filled plaza, "Oh uh, you're welcome," Isabella says, noticing a small group of sims gathered in the center where a giant stone pillar is jutting out of the ground. "Hey, what's that?" Isabella asks, moving towards the pillar, which has a large, built-in monitor in the center of it. She stands behind a gray-haired man whose nametag reads 'Michael Bachelor'; the woman follows her.

"No Dina, don't do that!" Michael exclaims, watching the monitor in front of him. A young woman with straight blonde hair and a tight black dress is digging through the garbage can. "You're going to lose your ring!" he chimes.

The woman steps forward, lightly tapping Michael on the shoulder. "Excuse me, but do you mind if we switch it to Strangetown?"

"No, it's fine. This channel is upsetting me anyway," Michael tells them, handing the woman the TV's matching remote. The woman gladly takes it from him and changes the channel.

She turns to Isabella, smiling after she switches to channel 2, "I thought you might want to see this," the woman remarks. Isabella nods, but for some reason she cannot bear to look up.

"Isabella! Isabella eXtreme!" someone shouts from behind her as they race towards the pair, the sound of their voice attracting Isabella's attention. "What are you doing here…?"

 _Meanwhile: Back in Strangetown_

The pink smoke clears around the six Strangetown residents as they find themselves in a dark room with jet black walls and a dark navy carpet. All of a sudden, rows of lights appear out of seemingly nowhere, lighting up the entire area around them. Pascal steps forward and turns to the others, his eyes finally adjusting to the massive scenery change. "Where are we…?"

"Hello, and welcome to the World Series of POOOOOKKKEEERRRR!" one of the two sim announcers shouts from his place behind the now-visible sports desk. Pascal and Lazlo stand behind them, staring at each other dumbfounded.

"And we've got a good one for you today, folks!" the second announcer states, speaking into his desk microphone, "We have Kea 'The Lighting' Kalson taking on Stan the Grim Reaper in a battle for Isabella's soul!"

"That's right, Larry," the sim next to him reiterates, "And the stakes couldn't be higher. Death has been on a bit of slump for premades lately and having Isabella's soul could really turn things around for his business."

"Really, Craig?" Larry asks, pulling his body back a bit, "How so?" he wonders.

"Well, for one thing – she's hot," Craig completes, causing all her friends to turn and gaze at him strangely.

Ripp rolls his eyes as he leans up against the wall next to him, "Great. Now I gotta worry about that guy, too!" he sarcastically huffs.

"Wait, is this broadcasting live?" Lazlo asks, gazing into one of the cameras.

Pascal shrugs, "I don't know. Quick! Say a bunch of swears!"

"Get them out of here," Larry mumbles out of the corner of his mouth. Two burley security guards nod and grab ahold of Pascal and Lazlo, dragging them out of the shot.

"Ooh! Hi Mom!" Pascal waves as he passes by the camera.

"Alright, the game is classic five card poker," the Grim Reaper states. He is sitting in front of a green velvet table, intently shuffling the cards as he gazes across at Kea. "Nothing wild. Whoever has the best hand wins."

Kea nods, adjusting her black dimmed sunglasses and baggy black sweatshirt, which has the words 'EAT THIS' written on it in bold blue letters, complete with a picture of bacon under it. She is wearing her classic poker attire. "Deal the cards, Stan, I don't have all day," she commands.

Tank leans down next to her. "Are you sure you can handle this?" he asks as Stan starts to deal the cards, "This is our only shot at getting her back."

"Tank, it'll be fine, relax," Kea attempts to console him, "I can play this game in my sleep. And I did, when we went to that poker tournament in Atlantic City that one time, remember?" Kea states, holding up a photo of her sleeping at the head poker table, drooling into the tournament trophy.

Tank smiles, "Oh yeah."

Several yards away, Vidcund stands alone, leaning up against the wall, his heart aching. "I killed her, I killed Isabella," Vidcund repeats, moaning into the wall. He can't even keep his head up. "It's my fault she's dead. It should've been me that perished!"

"Geez Vid, relax, you're being too hard on yourself," Pascal says, after the burley guards drop him and Lazlo off.

"Yeah, I mean you weren't the one that killed her – Circe did that," Lazlo reminds him, causing Vidcund to burst into tears as the haunting memories come rushing back to him. "Oh no."

Pascal swiftly turns to his youngest brother, giving him a glare, "You just had to mention the C word, didn't you?" he asks.

"Okay, here we go!" Stan announces as both he and Kea look down at their hands, "Alright Kea, what do you got?"

 _Meanwhile: Back in the Afterlife_

"Grandpa!" Isabella shouts, watching as a skinny, red-haired sim races over to her. Isabella gazes up at him, he appears to be just a little bit older than her, but his small, gentle facial features and thick, prominent glasses told her that it was him. Her grandfather stops in front of her. "Oh my gosh, I haven't seen you in years! You look great!" she praises.

"Thanks," Alfred states, adjusting his glasses, "I chose to be fifty years younger," he tells his granddaughter, "It really helps me out with my studies."

Isabella smiles, recalling just how much her grandfather read. In addition to being a successful knowledge sim, he was extremely playful, so much so that Isabella had gotten all ten of her playful genetics from him.

"So anyway, what are you doing here?" Alfred asks Isabella, still appearing quite confused, "Aren't you in your twenties?"

Isabella nods. "I am, but sometimes things happen," she states.

"Well, what happened?" Alfred asks.

"We went to war to save the city, and we actually won," Isabella begins, accurately recounting the tale, "It was pretty great-"

"And…?" Alfred continues, his eyebrow raised.

Isabella sighs, "And my friend was betrayed and he was going to die, so I jumped in front of him," Isabella recalls, "And I ended up dying in his place," she squeaks.

Alfred shakes his head. "Oh Isabella."

"I know," Isabella speaks out, "And I know this may sound kind of weird, but the moment before it happened, I felt this sense of urgency like – I don't know, like I couldn't let him die."

"Ah," Alfred responds, seeming as though he understands the feeling, "So this friend of yours, he's not just a friend, is he?" he asks skeptically.

Isabella shakes her head, "Oh no, he is," Isabella clarifies, "I met him last year when I was in Ole Town Woods and housed him in my room with his brothers," Isabella says, watching her grandfather nod as he attempts to follow. He raises his eyebrows at this news, "-It sounds weirder than it actually was, trust me," she replies, "But you know, they're friends. _Scientists_ ," Isabella nervously rambles.

Alfred smiles, letting out a playful chuckle. "Yes, well, I know the type," he states. "But I do remember hearing about the war," he tells her, "Your parents were in a lot of trouble, but even Loki aiming a gun to his chest couldn't get your father to crack," he comments.

"Yeah, he can be pretty tough," Isabella says, recalling the time where he banished Ripp from their residence.

Alfred's eyes soften, "I know your father can be a bit stern, but he really wants what's best for you," Alfred explains. Isabella nods. "I know this may sound strange, but a lot of people here have been following the war in Strangetown," Alfred informs her, "There were so many deaths near the beginning that people couldn't bear to watch it, but a few months ago people started watching again, and now they can't get enough!"

"Really?" Isabella speaks up, finding this rather surprising, "When was this?" she asks.

"-When you rescued the Curious brothers," Alfred answers. the smile not leaving his face, "There are a lot of Strangetown residents here that are big fans of the mayor. You should've heard the cheers when you rescued Vidcund, I swear I heard ringing for weeks."

"So you did watch what happened," Isabella comments, quite happy by this news.

"Of course," Alfred replies, "You know I'm always going to look out for you guys." Suddenly, a huge crowd of sims runs by them, gathering around one of the monitors.

Isabella turns to one of the sims, tapping them on the shoulder. "Um, excuse me? What's going on here?" she wonders.

"Look!" the sim answers, pointing up at the screen. Isabella gazes up at where the sim is pointing, turning her body so that she can look at the monitor, her mouth opening in shock when she sees what is being broadcast on it.

"Greetings everyone!" Craig Ray's image appears onscreen, "And if you are just joining us, welcome! We are live at the center of Strangetown's most infamous underground casino, where Kea Kalson is attempting to defeat the Grim Reaper in the ultimate poker match for Isabella eXtreme's life!"

Craig moves towards the table and stops in front of the young college graduate, who is carefully examining her cards. "Kea, is there anything that you like to say to all of the residents of Strangetown out there that are counting on you to deliver a victory?" he asks.

"Yes," Kea comments, rearranging the cards in her hands, "Can it, preachy! I'm trying to save my best friend's life here!" she shouts into the microphone.

Craig sweat drops, quickly moving the mic back under his face. "Beautiful. Back to you, Larry!"

Alfred steps back from the monitor for a second and glances over at his granddaughter, who is still staring up at the television, deep in thought. "Are you surprised to see your friends going through all this trouble?" he asks.

Isabella shakes her head, her lips forming into a smile as her gray eyes begin to shine at the monitor. "No," she speaks up, "This is just like them."


	13. Chapter 13: Tough Luck

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Thirteen_

 _Meanwhile: Back in Strangetown_

"A pair of twos," Kea states, spreading her cards out on the green velvet table. "I was going for a flush, but it didn't work out," she notes.

Stan glances down at Kea's cards briefly before putting down his own. "Pair of threes. I win," Stan announces, watching as Kea's face falls.

"Well, that's it folks! It looks like Isabella eXtreme is staying in the afterlife!" Craig Ray tells the cameras, all of Isabella's friends looking distraught behind him. "We'll see you next time, when General Buzz takes on Pollination Tech #9 in the battle for the turkey sandwich!"

"And we're clear!" one of the crew members announces, gesturing to cut off the cameras. Everyone from the TV station begins to pack up their things and walk away.

Behind them, Kea continues to sit stationary on the table. She looks down at her hands, unable to say a word, her body frozen in shock. Finally, she sighs and gets up, shaking Stan's hand. "Congratulations Stan, you won fair and square," Kea states as she turns away from the table.

All of a sudden, Stan begins to laugh, throwing his hand up trying to conceal his giggles.

"Hold up. Why are you laughing?' Kea asks, watching as the Grim Reaper struggles to cease.

The Grim Reaper smiles, watching as the others form a circle around them. "I can't take your friend, Kea," he says.

"That's great! But why not?" she wonders.

Stan sighs, turning away from the others for a moment to look off into the distance. "You know, people always assume that I like death just because I'm the Grim Reaper. But the truth is, without life, death would be meaningless," he confides before turning back around to answer Kea's question, "But Kea, the real reason why I can't take your friend is a simple matter of principle," Stan begins, "You see, a mere ten years ago, the National Association of Life and Death passed three rules that all Grim Reapers must follow regarding premature death."

"Okay," Kea says, urging him to continue.

"One," Stan begins, holding out his boney fingers as he counts them out, "I don't take children. Children are the purest form of sim life and represent the innocence that the world has since forgotten," Stan explains, "Two, I don't take pets. Pets are adorable and love their owners unconditionally. They cannot be selfish."

"That makes sense," Tank comments.

"And lastly, rule number three," Stan lists off, "I don't take people who commit selfless acts of love, which means, I also don't take people who save either of the first two. And your friend? She broke two of those rules: She saved his daughter," the Grim Reaper says, pointing to Pascal, "-and she – well, you know," he concludes, glancing up at Vidcund. "Besides, your friend's true purpose hasn't been fulfilled yet, to take her now would be _devastating._ And it seems like you guys need her a whole lot more than I do."

Stan pauses, giving a smile, "And that's why I'm not even going to bother going up against any one of you in a rock-paper-scissors match, because I know I would surely lose," he comments. "Of course, all this doesn't mean that your friend wasn't flawed, Kea," Stan explains, "Isabella was selective, stubborn, and oftentimes pushy, and clearly afraid of commitment-" Stan begins, Ripp raising his eyebrows at this news, "-And she did lie about a few things," Stan completes, "But to punish someone who does something unselfish in a world full of vengeance and hatred…well, that just wouldn't be fair. The world needs to be balanced. I mean, how else do you think Crystal survived death all those times?"

"Yeah, I was wondering about that…" Lazlo speaks.

"Yes, the world must be balanced," Stan repeats as he floats to the other side of the dimly lit room, "You will receive what you deserve," he states. The Grim Reaper stops in front of Vidcund, who is still leaning up against the wall, heartbroken. Vidcund barely lifts his head when he senses Stan's presence. "Vidcund, let it go," Stan speaks into the silence, "You have already paid for your mistakes, and now you are choosing to suffer for no reason," Stan firmly explains, "The problem was never that Circe didn't love you, it was that you truly believed that if she couldn't, then no one else could."

The Grim Reaper reaches into his pocket and throws his arm forward, dropping a strange blue powder all over Vidcund. Vidcund coughs a bit as he shakes his arms out, his cuts and bruises healing instantly. "Uh, what did you just do?" Vidcund asks, standing up from the wall a tad.

"I healed you," Stan answers matter-of-factly, "I tried to heal you emotionally, too, but it might take a while for it to work," he answers.

"Oh, uh, thank you," Vidcund says, giving a few nods.

The Grim Reaper shrugs, "Hey, a deal's a deal," he states before floating back over to Kea. "Thanks for the game, Kalson. I thought you weren't going to make it today, so I'd figure we'd just knock it out early," he comments.

"Oh right, it's Thursday," Kea says, a cloud of realization hitting her, "So that's why you wanted to play me!"

"Well, that and…I just really wanted to spend time with you," Stan confesses, rubbing the back of his cloaked head. Nearby, Ripp and Tank exchange outlandish glances with each other. "I've been thinking a lot about you lately."

"-I'm married now," Kea states, crossing her arms.

"I know," Stan squeaks, "But, you know, if anything were to happen to your husband-"

"-No."

"Right," Stan quickly responds, tapping Tank on the shoulder, "Good-looking guy by the way," he states, floating a bit away from them.

Next to Kea, Tank stands there looking terrified. "Uh, should I be scared?" he wonders as Pascal rushes over to his wife.

"Wait, you dated the Grim Reaper?" Pascal asks, clearly intrigued by this rather shocking discovery, "What was that like?"

Kea smiles, "It was great. I mean, the sex was really-" Kea quickly stops, noticing that Tank is now paying full attention to her, "-Not good," she completes, "But the relationship was way too complicated. I mean, it wasn't so much the Death thing as it was the not knowing where he was thing. And then of course there was the long black cloak that he never washed," Kea reminisces to the others, wandering off a bit, "Yeah, dating Andrew just got kind of gross."

"Wait, that's Andrew?" Tank speaks up, gesturing towards the Grim Reaper, "Your ex, Andrew?" Tank attempts to clarify.

Kea nods, "Uh-huh."

"Then who was that guy that we ate dinner with senior year?" Tank asks, his face filled with confusion.

"Oh! That was other Andrew," Kea answers, "He's my first ex," she tells them, "I thought it would be easier if all my boyfriends had the same name, that way it wouldn't get awkward if I accidentally slipped up while I was making out with the next one," she elaborates.

"Ah," Ripp says, "Now I can see why it was such a big deal when Tank came along."

Nearby, Pascal is conversing with Lazlo on the side of the room. "Wow…so Death doesn't like death. I feel like my entire life is a lie," Pascal comments, giving his head a shake.

"Hey, I know you!" Stan claims, floating up next to him. Seeing this, Pascal quickly uncrosses his arms and backs away from the Grim Reaper.

"What? No-No you don't!" Pascal stutters, looking around in a panic, "I've never seen you before in my life!" he exclaims.

"Yeah," Stan remembers, snapping his fingers as the association clicks in his mind, "You're my kid's friend!"

Pascal exhales, instantly relieved as the color comes back into his face. "Oh yeah. You're right about that!" Pascal sighs, returning to his cheery state, "So, how is he anyway?" he asks.

Stan shrugs, "I don't know. You see him more than I do," he answers with a somewhat sassy tone. Pascal and Lazlo watch as Stan floats to the other side of the room and rejoins Kea.

Pascal wipes the sweat from his brow. "Fewf! That was a close one!" he breaths, "For a second there I thought he finally figured out that I'm the one that has all those home and gardening magazines sent to his house," Pascal reveals. Lazlo raises an eyebrow.

"Alright Ms. Kalson, I am a man of my word," the Grim Reaper tells her, his voice echoing throughout the room. "I will bring back your friend – provided, she wishes to return," Ripp, Tank, and two of the Curious brothers gather around Kea and Stan, watching in awe as the Grim Reaper raises his hands up, the scenery disappearing around them. In a few moments, after a wide array of obscure noises and multi-colored lights, they find themselves back on the roof of the Beaker estate with Isabella's body lying down on the ground in front of them.

Stan reaches down and carefully picks her up, handing her to Pascal. "Here, you hold her, you're a mother," he comments.

Pascal opens his mouth to protest, but finds himself short on words. "Well, I can't argue with that," he realizes, holding Isabella up in a standing position.

"Now let's get her back," the Grim Reaper says, placing one of his boney hands on her forehead. His eyes turn bright white as he tries to connect with the afterlife. "Patience everyone," his voice mumbles thirty seconds later, "This may take a while."

 _Meanwhile: Back in the Afterlife_

Isabella continues to watch the monitors, sighing when it switches to a view of the Road to Nowhere and off her friends. Alfred walks up to her, placing a caring hand on her shoulder. "You know Isabella," he says, "Your friends were very lucky to have you."

Isabella shakes her head, turning to look her grandfather in the eyes. "No," she speaks suddenly, "I was the lucky one," she states, giving a small sniff as memories of them race into her mind.

…

Isabella and the Curious brothers are standing in her college dorm room, playing the first of many rounds of their weekly charades tournament. The air mattress has been deflated and pushed to the side so that they can each take turns standing in the center of the room.

"Give it up Lazlo, you guys are never going to catch up to us!" Pascal says, nudging Vidcund in the side.

Lazlo rolls his eyes, pointing his finger at Pascal accusingly, "Please! One more right in thirty seconds and we win!" Lazlo says, nodding at Isabella to start the timer. He examines the clue and then plops down on the floor, wrapping his arms and legs underneath him in a squat. Pascal and Vidcund stare at him strangely.

"Ooh! Ooh! Meatloaf!" Isabella shouts.

"YES!" Lazlo exclaims before jumping up from the carpet and wrapping his arms around Isabella in a victory hug. Vidcund and Pascal stare at the pair, dumbfounded.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me!" Vidcund states.

…

Isabella is situated at one of the black and white checkered tables in the cafeteria of Cassandra's dormitory, sighing as she impatiently taps the tip of her pencil against the table top. Across from her, Vidcund and Pascal are eating breakfast. Vidcund sets down his coffee cup and looks at the empty notepad that is sitting on the table in front of Isabella. "What's wrong?" he asks.

"I need to come up with a new painting for my Art 535 final," Isabella explains, locking eyes with Vidcund, "But I can't seem to come up with any ideas!"

"Ooh! Ooh! I got one!" Pascal speaks up as Lazlo picks up a plate from the counter and joins them, "Paint me, but instead of my stomach – make it a watermelon and have puzzles pieces spewing out of the watermelon and then have the puzzle pieces spell out the word 'sugar,'" he suggests, sporting an enthusiastic grin as he throws his hands up in celebration, "So, what do you think?" he asks.

"Uh, well…" Vidcund begins, both he and Lazlo have peculiar looks on their faces, trying to be fastidious with what he's about to say.

"I like it," Isabella speaks up, sparks in her eyes, "Can I use it?" she wonders.

Pascal nods, part of him in disbelief of what he is hearing. "Yeah, of course. Let's go," he answers, "But to tell you the truth, I still don't really get it," Pascal confesses.

"That's okay," Isabella replies, sitting up from the table as the pair heads to her room, "Sometimes with art, you don't have to understand."

 _One Month Later_

"So, what do you think?" Isabella asks, stepping away from the easel and presenting the painting to Pascal, who is sitting alone on her bed. "I wanted you to be the first one to see it, cause this was your idea," she explains.

Pascal stares up at the painting and smiles. "It's awesome. I love it!" Pascal exclaims, before standing up next to the picture carrying Amelia in his arms. He gestures Isabella to the other side of the painting and takes out his cell phone, holding it out in front of them. "Selfie!" he cries, snapping the picture.

He turns his phone around and looks at it briefly, before holding it out to Isabella in triumph. "Hey, we look good," he states. Isabella smiles and nods.

…

Tank and Isabella are walking through Sim State Park with Isabella stopping every few feet to take photos as the pair trek near the Ole Town Woods. "Thanks for coming with me to park, Tank," Isabella says, gently placing down her camera, sighing as she breathes in the fresh park air surrounding them.

"No problem," Tank responds, waving away the thought, "I didn't want you walking around here by yourself, there could be weirdos lingering in these parts," he tells her, only half-joking, "Besides, you know I'm happy to do this with you."

"You're happy?" Isabella repeats, scrunching her eyebrows.

"Well, as happy as I can be without Kea being here," Tank comments, leaning forward a bit to examine a sunflower. "Man, I haven't seen one of these in a while," Tank states, examining the flower's fuzzy brown texture more closely. A bee flies onto its surface, causing Tank to yelp. He ducks behind Isabella as she takes a photo of the animal.

Isabella laughs as the bee flies away, off in search of its next pollination. Tank stands back up straight behind her and steps into her view.

"Now don't go telling anyone about that," Tank advises.

Isabella smiles and laughs, before giving Tank a small nod. "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me," she promises, holding her hand out in a semi scout's honor.

…

"Izzy! Izzy!" Ripp calls out, knocking on Isabella's bedroom door. Ripp smiles when he catches Isabella walking down the hall towards him. "Izzy!" Ripp states, his voice filled with relief as he meets her halfway between Tank's room and his own. Ripp rushes forward and grabs both of Isabella's hands, delicately holding them up towards her chin with his own.

"Look, I know it's senior year and we've been busy with the trial and I didn't get a chance to buy you anything, but I think I may have something that's even better," he tells her, shying away a bit as he reaches behind his back.

"Oh, okay," Isabella squeaks, blushing a bit as she brings her hands together.

Ripp pulls out a piece of paper and holds it out to her. "Look! It's me and you!" Ripp says, holding up the colored pencil drawing that he had been working on all week. The picture shows a cartoon version of what appears to be a teenaged Ripp and Isabella holding hands. "Well, it's supposed to be, but I'm not really an artist," he comments.

Isabella takes the picture, her face beaming as she gazes at it. "I love it," Isabella sincerely tells him, "This is going right on my art wall."

"You have an art wall?" Ripp asks.

"Yeah, it's right next to pop tart wall where Pascal posts all of his pop tart selfies," Isabella explains, looking down at the picture once more, "Thank you, Ripp," she says, pulling him into a hug.

Ripp sighs lovingly, "You're welcome," he replies.

…

Isabella is standing at the podium on the miniature stage in the auditorium-sized basement of the safe house, attempting to speak to the college townies. "Hello? Everyone? Can I have your attention please?" Isabella calls out to the crowd, but the college townies continue to ignore her. "I don't understand, why are they ignoring me?" Isabella asks as Kea steps up from the side staircase to assist.

"Probably because they're not sure if they can trust you," Kea informs her, "I mean, premade sims don't exactly have the best track record when it comes good relationships with townies," she clarifies.

Isabella shrugs. "But what about you and me?" she says, causing Kea's eyes to open with clarity.

"HEY! EVERYBODY SHUT-UP AND LISTEN! BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE ZERO CHANCE AT WINNING THIS WAR IF YOU DON'T TRUST THIS GIRL RIGHT HERE!" Kea yells, putting a hand on Isabella's shoulder. Immediately all of the townies stop what they are doing and turn towards the podium.

"Thank you," Kea praises, "Now everyone, this is Isabella eXtreme, she is my best friend and our number one ally. She saved my life twice, and she is so loyal that I could give her season three of _Life in Pleasantview_ right now, and I can guarantee you that she would not watch it without me."

The college townies look around and begin murmuring amongst each other as Kea gestures Isabella to her place at the podium. Isabella walks forward and stands next to Kea, speaking cautiously into the microphone.

"Hello everyone, I'm Isabella," Isabella shyly says, feeling her legs shake beneath her. She turns to Kea, who gestures her to continue, giving Isabella a comforting smile, "And I just want to say that you're all very important. I know with all of the events that have been happening lately, some of you might not think that you are, but I do," Isabella says, nervously playing with her hands, "We all do," she continues, "So let's win this together!" She tells them. The crowd is silent for a few seconds, before erupting into a huge array of applause. Isabella steps back from the podium lighting up as the college townies give her a standing ovation. Next to her, Kea is clapping as well. Isabella turns to Kea and mouths the words 'thank you.'

Kea nods. "Not bad, eXtreme," she whispers to her friend, "Not bad at all."

…

Vidcund is stepping out of Isabella's doorway, walking down the hall with his cup of coffee to check the daily news. "Five second rule!" Isabella shouts as she races down the hall. She jumps into his arms, wrapping her legs around his body as Vidcund drops everything to catch her.

"Hi," she greets, using her one free hand to brush away some of her red hair from her face.

"Hi," Vidcund greets back, still clearly startled.

"We're playing Five Second Rule," Isabella explains, reading the puzzled look that is on the young scientist's face, "It's kind of like The Floor is Lava, except you can walk on the floor for five second intervals," she explains, "You wanna play?"

Vidcund smiles, giving her a rather sassy look. "Yeah, let me just jump onto Pascal," he states.

Isabella laughs before her eyes trail to the ground, noticing that Vidcund's coffee is now spilled out on the floor. "I'll buy you a new coffee if we leave right now and you promise not to drop me before we get out the door," she promises, her eyes shining as she gazes back up at her friend.

Vidcund nods. "Good. Cause that was the next thing I was going to ask," he states boldly, slowly moving towards the exit.

"Wow. Mr. Big Shot Mayor has a problem with me," Isabella says, leaning her head up against his shoulder. "You must get that what? Three? Four times a day?" she sasses back.

"You better be careful kid, or you might find a street named after you," Vidcund comments.

…

"Yeah," present-day Isabella says as she continues to stare off into the distance, "I was really lucky to have them," she seconds herself, looking down at the fluffy clouds that are situated beneath her. "They helped me a lot when things got complicated."

Suddenly an alarm sounds above the clouds, disrupting the peaceful atmosphere of the afterlife. "What's going on?" Isabella shouts over the alarm, grabbing onto her grandfather in fear of the unknown.

" _Isabella eXtreme,"_ a voice that sounds like the head clerk's shouts from above the loudspeaker, _"You have been summoned back to Strangetown. If you wish to return, say your goodbyes and press the gold button on your blouse. That is all."_ The loudspeaker shuts off as the alarms cease blaring around them.

"Well, look at you," Alfred says, patting Isabella gently on the back, "You've been summoned back to Strangetown," he excitedly states, his happy demeanor fading when he notices Isabella staring down at the ground, appearing somewhat sad. "What's the matter, Isabella? I thought you would be excited."

Isabella looks up, forcing a small smile. "Oh, I am," she answers, "It's just – before I left I found myself really lost, and I came to a point in my life where I didn't know to do, or who I should be with," she begins, Alfred can see her adrift in her eyes, "And I know I'm past the age where it's acceptable for me to ask for others to tell me what to do, but honestly, Grandpa, I've never been this lost in my life," she confides, her eyes watering up a bit.

"Ah," Alfred states, placing a loving hand on his granddaughter's shoulder. "You know Isabella, life is strange," he begins, "Sometimes you go one way expecting to find one thing and you end up finding yourself somewhere completely different. Now, I can't tell you what path to choose, all I can tell you is that when the time comes, you'll know what is right," he advises. "You know, anyone can create a show for the cameras, but it's how people act when they think no one is watching that shows the kind of sim that they really are."

Isabella nods and watches as her grandfather steps around her, one of the TV monitors now in view. Isabella steps forward and gazes at the screen, her grandfather's words sinking in as she eyes her friends conversing with each other on the roof of the Beaker estate. In the corner of the screen, she sees Vidcund standing away from the group, leaning up against the wall, looking miserable. Isabella watches as Vidcund reaches around his waist, his hand coming across the piece of fabric that she had tied around his body to stop his bleeding earlier that day. Vidcund picks it up with his right hand and gazes intently at it – tears forming in his eyes. Isabella has never seen him look so devastated. Isabella steps back, finding this scene particularly hard to watch, as she turns away from the monitor, clearly upset.

Isabella takes a few steps closer to Alfred, now knowing exactly what she must do. Isabella stares forward, pushing the gold button on her blouse. "I need to go back," she states.

Alfred nods, he can tell that Isabella is sure of herself. "Alright then, I understand. Good luck, Isabella," Alfred warmly wishes. "I hope you find everything that you're looking for."

"Thanks Grandpa," Isabella states, pulling him into a heartfelt embrace. She pulls away, her body now feeling light as a feather as she feels herself floating upward above the afterlife, soaring above the clouds. Isabella gazes down, catching eyes with the elegant woman that was showing her around earlier. "Wait!" she calls out, "I just realized, I never caught your name!" she shouts down to the blonde-haired sim. Nearby, other sims are gathering, watching the scene unfold around them.

The woman smiles below her. "Oh. I'm Lyla," she reveals, "Lyla Grunt," Lyla smiles, waving to Isabella, "By the way, thanks for the flowers!"


	14. Chapter 14: Start of Something Good

**Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Fourteen_

Back in Strangetown, Stan continues to press his thumb against Isabella's forehead, his eyes glowing bright white. Suddenly, a beam of light drapes down from the sky, hitting Isabella's chest, causing her to open her mouth slightly upon impact, a vivacious glow returning to her skin. Isabella groans as Pascal lets go of her shoulders, allowing her to stand up right. All her friends watch intently as Isabella slowly opens her eyes and proceeds to look down at her clothes. She trails her hands down the material, grabbing a small piece of her shirt between her fingertips.

"Pink," she awes, her facing filling with both relief and happiness, "Thank goodness!" she chimes, now noticing that all her friends are staring at her dumbfounded. Isabella nervously lifts her hand, "Uh…hi," she greets.

All at once Ripp, Kea, Tank, Pascal, and Lazlo race over her, swarming her with hugs as they all begin to talk at the same time. "Izzy! I'm so glad you're okay!" Ripp cries, hugging her the hardest.

Isabella smiles, "Me too," she says, eyeing her best friend who is now standing a ways behind them. "So, what did I miss?" she asks.

"Oh, nothing much," Kea replies, dancing around the topic, "Except some of the coolest things I have ever seen!" she continues, bouncing up and down in excitement. "Let's see, first you died, then I bargained with Stan and we all got whisked to an underground casino where I played a televised battle with the Grim Reaper for your life!" Kea tells her, the excitement in her voice only growing, "Then, after I lost, he told me that he was going to bring you back anyway, and then he did and it was AWESOME!"

Isabella nods, tilting her head a bit, "So, not much?"

"Exactly!" Kea agrees.

"Well, thanks for playing for my life, Kea, I really appreciate it," Isabella says, wrapping her arms around her best friend.

Kea beams. "Well, yeah. Of course," she replies. She lets go of her friend, watching as Isabella walks over to the right and stops in front of Tank.

"So, now that you've successfully led an army that kicked some serious butt, are you going to go into the military career?" she teasingly asks him.

Tank smirks, crossing his arms in front of his torso, "No way in hell," he replies, "Though I surprisingly enjoyed working with those people. And even though my dad doesn't want to admit it, I think he hates Pollination Tech #9 a little bit less now."

Isabella laughs as her brother races up to her, pulling her into yet another hug. "Izzy! I just heard what happened! It was all over the news!" Brent says, giving her an update, "But I'm glad to see you're not dead anymore."

"Thanks," Isabella replies, "And thank you two for rounding up all of the troops," Isabella speaks, gesturing to both Brent and Breanna. "I heard you rounded up thousands of sims."

"Yeah," Brent responds, "Aside from all the fistfights we had to break up beforehand, it was kind of fun," Brent says, giving a small nod as he reminisces a bit about his part of the mission, "But all those days of hard work was totally worth it, just to see the look on Loki's face when he realized he was done."

Isabella smiles and laughs once more before stopping in front of Pascal and Lazlo, who are still staring at her nearby. "So, any big plans now that you've successfully won the rivalry?" Isabella asks them.

"Well, I plan on retiring as a cult leader so I can focus on raising Amelia," Pascal answers, "I'd also like to take a trip to Portugal. I heard they have really dedicated readers there," Pascal smiles, "And want to get a Mohawk – no wait, a fro! No, a Mohawk consisting of miniature fros!"

Lazlo shakes his head as he nudges his older brother in the side. "And I plan on keeping Pascal away from the hair studio," he answers, "And believe me, that's going to be a full-time job," he states, knowing full well the task that he is in for.

Suddenly, Crystal trots onto the roof, an entire camera crew following her. "Hey guys," she greets, pointing back at the crew whose cameras read 'Strangetown News' on their sides, "Sorry to bother you, but these people are doing a special news broadcast about the Strangetown War, and they want to talk to the mayor," she tells them, "Now, I don't know who that would be, and I'm not you sure you guys know either, so I dug through the basement and found the town charter," she says, holding the piece of tattered manila paper out to them as well as the official Strangetown mayoral ribbon.

They look amongst each other before Pascal steps forward, grabbing the items. He scans the charter over. "Well, according to the official town charter, if war breaks out and the city finds itself without a mayor, the leader of the winning side can either accept the position or appoint someone else that assisted with the victory," Pascal says, looking up from the document, "So Isabella, it looks like you are now officially the mayor of Strangetown!" he declares, pining the ribbon on her shirt.

Around her, everyone cheers as the camera crew begins to surround her, cameras and microphones all pointed at her face. Isabella continues to stand there, shocked as she gazes down at the pin, her hands trailing off the ribbon as she spots Vidcund crouched down on the floor away from the group.

Everyone watches as Isabella moves forward, silently stopping in front of Vidcund. Upon her arrival, Vidcund looks up, nodding in approval. "Congratulations, kid," Vidcund says suddenly, barely able to look her in the eyes.

Isabella nods, her eyes trailing down to the ribbon that is pinned to her signature pink outfit. It's a great honor, but at that moment Isabella realizes that it makes her feel surprisingly empty. "Congratulate yourself, Mr. Mayor!" Isabella says as she quickly removes the ribbon from her shirt and pins it onto Vidcund's jacket. Vidcund looks down at it in utter shock, before looking back up at her, touched, tears forming in his eyes.

"All hail, Mayor Vidcund!" Isabella proclaims, stepping to the side and throwing her arms out to present him. Everyone erupts into cheers as Vidcund slowly stands up to face the crowd, empowerment slowly flowing through his body.

"Whoo! Yeah Vid!" Pascal cheers the loudest as the cameras start to surround him on all sides. Isabella and the others back away from the crowds as they watch dozens of citizens rush over to congratulate him as various reporters interview the new mayor of Strangetown.

Vidcund turns to Isabella, who is now standing across the rooftop away from the crowds, and mouths the words 'Thank you.' At this, Isabella smiles, throws her right arm forward and circles it briefly in front of her, offering him an overenthusiastic bow. She leans back and beams, giving a small laugh. Vidcund smiles, his eyes shining.

"Well, would you look at that?" Tank says, pacing up behind her, "It looks like Strangetown has been restored to its former glory!" he narrates, "I guess I can finally check that off my bucket list," he says, reaching into his pants pocket. He pulls out a small list and checks the last box off with a pen.

Kea wraps her arm around Isabella, patting her gently on the shoulder as they both watch the news reporters interviewing Vidcund. "You did the right thing, Isabella," she states.

"You really think so?" Isabella says, turning to Kea.

"I think you know so," Kea answers, "So why are you asking me?" she asks in her typical sassy Kea tone, "Besides, you know how much Vidcund loves the neighborhood – and everyone in it," Kea says, emphasizing her last point as she gently pats Isabella on the shoulder one more time, before going off to converse with Pascal.

Isabella stands there stationary as Kea's words begin echoing through her mind. Isabella looks back up at Vidcund, an unsettling feeling filling her stomach as if part of her is aching to know the truth – but another part of her is too scared to find out how he truly feels about her. Deep down Isabella knows that Vidcund is a complicated sim, and as she much as she hates to admit it, she is well aware that she may be waiting for a day that will never come. At this, Isabella slowly steps back and turns to her friends, noticing that Lazlo is now gesturing her over. Isabella gives a brave grin and walks forward, knowing that she will have to face this problem another day.

"You know," Pascal begins talking just as Isabella arrives, "as much as I hate Loki, part of me kind of feels bad for him…" Pascal trails off, pausing for a second, "-And the feeling's gone!" Pascal completes, heaving a huge sigh of relief, "Well, that's a relief! For a second there, I thought I was going soft."

"Yeah…" Kea speaks, digging into her pocket and pulling out three strips of bacon. She devours all three of them in less than two seconds and burps. "Well, let's go home now. I want to eat the rest of that bacon loaf!" she announces, turning towards the exit stairs.

Tank grabs her shoulder, gently pulling his wife back. "Uh, Kea?" he states, "None of us really have homes. We had to save the city before we got a chance to buy them, remember?"

"-Oh yeah," Kea recalls, slouching in somewhat of a sorrow. Pascal walks up behind the pair, wrapping an arm around each of them.

"Now, now, don't be sad!" he tells them, "You guys can all stay with us!" Pascal offers, "Just give me a minute to fish the raw hot dogs out of the hot tub," he says as Ripp and Tank look up at him, slightly disgusted.

Brent smiles, "That's really nice, but if you don't mind, Breanna and I are going to move in with my parents while our house is getting built."

Next to him, Tank scrunches his eyebrows, "Where did you guys get the money for a house?" he asks, clearly interested.

"I struck oil one day on the plot of land that I bought a few years ago, and the city owes me five million simoleons," Brent answers, causing Tank's mouth to drop.

"Holy shit," he states, "Now that's lucky," he comments, shaking his head. "Well Pascal, as much as I would love to buy a house and move right in, I think we're going to take you up on your offer," he tells the oldest Curious brother, grabbing Kea's hand and gesturing between them, "It sure beats moving back in with my dad, especially now that he has that evil killer robot," he adds.

"Yeah, I'll join you guys, too," Ripp seconds, shuddering at the thought of living with his dad again.

"Sweet!" Pascal says, watching as the cameramen start to leave the roof. "Izzy, are you coming?" Pascal wonders as all five of them look up at her, awaiting her response.

Behind her, Vidcund wraps his arm around her, pulling the young college graduate into a side hug. "Of course she is! It's the least we can do," Vidcund answers, looking down at Isabella, whose face seems almost unreadable. "You do want to stay with us, right?" he asks, afraid that he has spoken too soon.

Isabella shyly nods, butterflies fluttering in her stomach as she finds herself struggling to look up at Vidcund's face. "Yeah, of course," she answers him.

"Great! Let's go!" Pascal sparks up, leading the way, "I can't wait for you guys to see our place!"

…

The scene flashes to all seven of them standing in front of the Curious residence – the house still smoking from its rooftop. The shutters are in massive disrepair, there are dozens of holes in the lawn, and the plants are terribly overgrown to coincidentally resemble some sort of Frankenstein creature. On top of that, it looks like the house is going to fall apart any second.

"Geez, what a trash heap," Tank comments as one of the pillars falls backwards, causing the entire left side of the house to collapse.

"Well, there goes my room," Lazlo says, surprisingly nonchalant.

Pascal smiles as he steps further onto the lawn, making his way towards one of the remaining standing wall pieces near the front door. "Don't worry guys, we'll just use the back-up house!"

"You have a back-up house?" Ripp asks, somewhat surprised by this news.

"Yeah," Pascal states, opening a small latch that is sticking out of the wall and pressing a few buttons on the exposed keypad, "I built it just in case future me ever travelled back in time and swore revenge," he explains, pressing the large glowing green enter key on the bottom of the keypad.

Pascal quickly runs back, ducking behind the mailbox as the ground begins to rumble. The ground rapidly shakes, causing what's left of the old structure to disintegrate and seep into the sand as a new, identical house generates on top of it, taking its place.

Pascal returns to the others, dusting his hands off as he stops to admire his work. "Not bad," he states, "I just have to make sure to properly secure the gates in case I return to seek vengeance," he adds.

Isabella cocks her head, still slightly confused. "And why would you do that?" she asks.

Pascal turns back to her, his face surprisingly menacing. "Wouldn't you like to know?" he says in a shady tone, throwing his head up as he cackles at the sky. "Bwahaha! Mwahahaha!" Pascal laughs. He coughs a few times and looks over at his deeply concerned friends and family. "So, who wants tea cakes?" he asks in his casual tone.

"We'll have time for that later," Vidcund says, before turning around to face all six of them, "Right now, we have a city to rebuild!"

…

"And just a little bit more and…there!" Kea says, making a photo frame with her fingers as she looks up at the covered-up city entrance sign. Around her, all the residents of Strangetown are cleaning up the Road to Nowhere, restoring the town to its original state. Isabella walks over to Kea, taking off her rubber gardening gloves after weeding out the entire downtown area with Vidcund. Isabella wipes the sweat off her forehead as the others gather behind her for the unveiling of the sign.

"Hey Izzy, check it out! I took the liberty of designing the sign myself," Kea says, walking towards the five-hundred-foot-long rope that is hanging off the edge of the purple curtain, "It's similar to the old one, with one key difference," she explains. She walks a few meters forward and twirls back around to the crowd of sims that are all standing behind her. "Are you guys ready?" she asks. Everyone cheers in response. "Alright then! Here we go!" she exclaims.

Kea yanks the rope down as the curtain opens, revealing a large white background sign with the words, 'Welcome to Strangetown' written in bacon lettering. Underneath it, the subline reads: 'Welcome, college townies!' Kea moves her eyebrows up and down at Isabella as if to enthusiastically ask, 'What do you think?'

Isabella smiles and nods in approval. "Kea, it's perfect," she states.

"Yeah," Kea seconds, "And I even wrote who the mayor is under this second curtain!" she exclaims, pulling on a second rope and exposing the sign next to it which looks also identical to the first one, except it reads: 'Mayor – Victor Valant Vosho the pregnant guy's blonde brother' on it with the first three guesses crossed out.

Vidcund looks up, scrunching his face in thought. "She never did get my name right," Vidcund comments, turning to Isabella before cracking a small smile.

 _Later That Afternoon:_

Ripp, Isabella, Tank, Kea, Lazlo, Brent, and Breanna are standing on the center of a stage in the middle of the city watching as Vidcund gets sworn into the mayoral office by the head of the Strangetown Council, Pascal Curious. In front of them, hundreds of residents are gathered watching the scene unfold – including several cameramen and all of Kea's fellow college townies.

"Vidcund Curious, based on section 17a of the Strangetown Charter and Isabella's choosing-" Pascal begins, stopping to give her a small smile as he looks up from the charter that he is reading from, "You have been chosen to become mayor of the city of Strangetown," Pascal explains, placing a hand on Vidcund's shoulder as he kneels in front of him, Vidcund's hand on the black book. "Do you accept these responsibilities and solemnly swear to protect the city and all who dwell in it?"

"- I do," Vidcund answers, never sounding more confident of anything in his life.

Pascal smiles, "Well then, as head of the Strangetown City Council, I hereby appoint you, Vidcund Curious, mayor of the city of Strangetown – with all of its rights and privileges," Pascal announces, giving his younger brother a pat on the shoulder, "May you make our city proud," he adds, as he places the mayoral sash over his brother.

Vidcund gets up from off the ground and watches as all the residents erupt into applause in front of him, a few of them bouncing up and down as they give the newly appointed mayor a standing ovation. Vidcund turns to his friends and family that are all standing onstage clapping for him as well.

"Thank you, everyone," Vidcund says, speaking into the microphone that is behind the podium. "Thank you," he states once more as the crowd wanes down a bit. "I just wanted to thank everyone who took time out of their lives to help with the war. I know it was a scary time for all of us, and I am so glad that it is over and that we have people here that are willing to risk their lives for the safety of this city and for the amazing residents that live here," he speaks, stopping to allow the crowd to cheer once more.

Vidcund swallows, "I especially want to thank my brothers, Pascal and Lazlo, who have stuck by me through what has definitely been the hardest time of my life," Vidcund says, turning a bit so that he can gaze at them, "And as expected, they will be resuming their same positions on my staff as they did during my first and second terms in office – with Pascal being the head of the Strangetown City Council and Lazlo being my chief financial adviser," he states as Pascal and Lazlo awkwardly wave at the crowd.

"I would also like to thank these six people that are standing behind me," Vidcund continues, turning towards the others that are standing in a line on the back portion of the stage. "And if you don't mind, I have prepared a special thank you speech for each of them," Vidcund informs the crowd as he flips through his notecards. He stops in front of Brent and Breanna.

"Brent eXtreme and Breanna Bertino," Vidcund begins, "Your excellent people skills, upbeat personalities, and strong educational backgrounds are what made you two so successful in rounding up the troops that we needed on our side. For your services to this great city, I hereby grant you – Brent eXtreme - a position at level ten of the Paranormal career track."

Behind Brent, Lazlo nudges Pascal in the side. "What's level ten?" he mutters.

"-Cult leader," Pascal whispers back, beaming as they stare at the crowd. He and Lazlo turn to each other and grin.

"Wait, WHAT?!" Brent calls out, turning to Vidcund; not believing what he is hearing.

"I'm giving you your dream job as a gratuitous gift for helping us save the city," Vidcund clarifies, wondering why Brent is so confused.

"You can do that?!" Brent squeaks.

Vidcund nods, "Yeah." Brent leans backward and passes out, causing Breanna to bend down and check on him.

She stands back up, giving everyone the okay symbol. "He's fine, he's just a little overwhelmed."

"Well, that's understandable," Vidcund says, stopping in front of Breanna, "And Breanna Bertino, for your outstanding service to the city and our shared love of plants, I hereby grant you a position at level ten of the Natural Scientist career track."

"That's very sweet, Vidcund," Breanna replies, "But if you don't mind, I think I would like to earn that position on my own," she states.

Vidcund smiles and gives a small nod. "I respect that. But at least take this coupon for your troubles."

Breanna grabs the coupon from Vidcund and reads the small print. "Ooh. 25% off all haircare products!" she exclaims, showing it to Pascal.

"Now that's a good one," he agrees as Vidcund stops in front of Ripp Grunt himself.

"Ripp, Loki was very cruel to you, and for that I am sorry," Vidcund apologizes his hands behind his back, "Now I know you have had a hard life, but hopefully this will make it a little bit better," he says, handing the check to him.

Ripp looks down at the money from Olive's will, his eyes widening like saucers. "Oh my god! I-I think I'm going to pass out," Ripp says, starting to feel dizzy. Tank grabs a hold of him.

"And Tank," Vidcund continues, staring at Ripp's brother. "You are one heck of an officer – and it would be my honor to bestow upon you the top position as the leader of the Armed Forces of Strangetown," he offers, but Tank shakes his head.

"Thanks Vidcund," he states, "But the military career is not really my calling," Tank confesses.

"Well then, at least let me give you something so that you go after what your true calling is," Vidcund states, pulling out a small white business card. "At least let me get you your own cooking show," he says, handing Tank the business card.

His face lights up as he scans it over. "My own cooking show? Oh my gosh! I guess I better start learning how to cook then," he comments as nearby, Brent has since gotten up from his earlier incident, and is nudging Ripp in the side.

"Bet you it only lasts one season," he mutters under his breath; Ripp laughs.

Vidcund sighs, taking a deep breath as he stops in front of Kea, who has been standing on stage the whole time, surprisingly calm. "Kea, I will get to you momentarily, but first I need to pull someone out of the audience," Vidcund announces as he begins scanning through the crowd. "Crystal Vu? Is she here?" Vidcund asks. A few townies nod and move her towards the front of the audience, "Come here," Vidcund states, grabbing her hand and helping her jump onstage.

"Crystal, you were a gigantic help throughout this journey. These past three months, you have established hope in a city that had none. Your countless acts of bravery and devotion to me and to what is right has earned you the title of 'Loki Slayer,'" Vidcund says; Crystal gives a small laugh, "I hereby appoint you, Crystal Vu, head of the Department of Defense, where I am sure you will excel greatly," Vidcund says, placing his notecards down to give her a round of applause as the others join in behind him. Crystal turns around and eyes the crowd, who is cheering twice as loud for her.

Crystal steps back, feeling slightly overwhelmed as she accepts the medal that Vidcund is handing her. She pins it on her shirt as she shyly waves to the crowd. She then walks over to Lazlo who is shooting her a 'thumbs up' and stands up next to him, her face still filled with shock as she basks all of the cheers in.

"Hey," Lazlo speaks suddenly, "Do you want to go out with me again?" he asks.

Crystal nods slightly as both of them continue to stare straight ahead, still in utter shock. "-Yes," she answers almost immediately.

Crystal and Lazlo turn their heads and look at each other, both of their faces shining with happiness.

"Alright Kea, it's your turn," Vidcund says, moving back in front of the young townie.

"Lay it on me, dork," Kea says, she turns to the side noticing that Isabella has her eyebrow raised, "I mean-Mayor Dork," Kea corrects, shooting Isabella a double thumbs up.

Vidcund laughs. "Kea Kalson, as the first ever college townie to successfully break the cycle, you risked your life for a city that degraded you since the day you were born," Vidcund explains, "Then you helped us round up groups of sims to restore and save it," he adds, "Your dedication and trust in premade sims is one of the things that made this mission so successful. If it weren't for you and your fellow college townies, we probably wouldn't have stood a chance," Vidcund admits to the crowds, "Kea Kalson, it is my honor to bestow upon you the highest honor that I have ever given anyone – the key to the city," Vidcund states, holding out the gigantic golden encrusted foot-long key and handing it to her.

Kea's eyes widen as she picks it up, cradling the large key in her arms. "Whoa!" she oohs, "What does it open?" she asks.

"Uh, I think it's a metaphorical thing," Pascal speaks up next to her.

"Oohh…" Kea replies, gazing down at the key once again, "So metaphorically what does it open?"

"Also Kea," Vidcund begins again, still standing in front of the former college townie, "Due to various circumstances – including all of the terrible crap that you had to endure, such as Loki trying to kill you your senior year of college, I would like to give you something else," Vidcund tells her, "Since Loki tried to shorten your life by attempting to feed you to a cowplant, I am going to extend your life by granting you your lifetime want," Vidcund explains.

In front of him, Kea's eyes widen, a cloud of realization floating into her mind. "Does that mean…?" she begins.

"Yes Kea," Vidcund answers, "It is my honor to bestow upon you the most coveted position in the Law Enforcement career track. From this day forward, you will be known as Kea 'The Lightning' Kalson, Captain Hero," he declares, as Kea races over and frantically shakes his hand.

"YES! YES! YES!" Kea shouts, throwing her hands up as she bounces around in a circle in celebration. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she cries, before frantically grabbing Pascal and kissing him on the side of the face. "Muah!" she says, leaving Pascal somewhat creeped out as she runs forward and blows kisses to the crowd, "I love you crazy premades!" Behind her, Isabella is smiling about a mile wide, happy for her friend's utter excitement.

"And yes, to answer your next question," Vidcund speaks up once more, walking over to Kea's new position onstage, "It does come with a complimentary meat basket." Vidcund announces, handing the gift to her. Kea shrieks.

"Oh my gosh! I'M GOING TO EAT ALL OF IT RIGHT NOW!" Kea taking the basket from Vidcund and racing to the other side of the stage.

Pascal steps forward. "Uh, isn't anyone going to stop her?" he asks, gesturing towards Kea, who has already eaten an entire package of beef jerky.

Tank shrugs it off, "Eh, she'll tire herself out."

Isabella laughs, happily watching as her friend devours even more of the basket, a huge mob of cameramen snapping photos in front of her. Isabella looks up, noticing someone's shadow covering her. Vidcund stands tall, his eyes filled with gratitude as he stares at Isabella.

"Isabella," he says softly, speaking in his standard casual tone, "I know you think that you were useless in this endeavor," Vidcund begins, "But it's average sims like you that make this whole city work. Your unselfishness and spontaneity, as well as your care for others, is what saved this city and everyone in it from a bitter defeat," he tells her, not bothering to look down at his notecards, "You are the reason why half of us on this stage are standing here today. I thank you deeply for all the hospitality that you have shown my brothers and I, and for all the months that you put yourself in harm's way for the good of simkind," Vidcund says, noting that Isabella is paying attention to every word.

Vidcund nervously looks down at the ground and sighs, putting his notecards away and clasping his hands together in front of his body before saying his last sentence. "Izzy, for saving me and the city, I will give you anything in world."

Isabella gazes up at him, her mind going in a thousand different directions. She looks to her friends and family, then at the crowd, and finally at Vidcund who is awaiting her answer. Isabella sighs, finding her stomach tied up in knots. "But, what if I can't have what I really want?" she states into the silence.

"Well," Vidcund says, shuffling his feet a bit, "As mayor of the city, I can assure you that whatever you want is not out of reach," he assures her sweetly. Isabella looks up at him, the pair staring at each other longingly without saying a word – silently speaking with their eyes.

Pascal taps his foot impatiently, glancing a few times at his wristwatch before walking over to them. "Uh, yeah, can we move it along here? I still have to pick up my daughter from daycare," he complains.

"Oh, sorry," Vidcund apologizes, breaking the moment. He turns back to Isabella, "So uh, is there anything else that you want?" he asks her.

"Actually, now that I think about it, there is one thing that you can do for me," Isabella says, a smile appearing on her face. "Can you-?" she waves Vidcund over and whispers the rest of her request in his ear. Vidcund pulls away and nods, seeming rather flustered as he moves away from her.

He readjusts his tie, nodding firmly. "Yeah, I can do that," he tells her. Vidcund walks to the center of the stage and stops in front of Tank and Kea, "Izzy says that she would like to pitch in with the city to throw you guys a proper wedding," he reveals, "That is, if you want it, of course."

"Kea?" Tank speaks up, looking towards his wife. Kea looks up from her meat basket and smiles.

"Yes! Definitely!" she beams, "But can you give me at least a month? Cause I want to buy a dress for it."

Vidcund nods. "Alright. Just let me know when you guys are ready."

Thirty minutes later, after the ceremony has ended and the last of the crowds are dispersing, Isabella is standing at the base of the stage watching as Tank and Kea happily tell their friends and family members about their plans for the wedding. Isabella smiles as she feels Vidcund walk up next to her, standing at her side.

"You know, that wasn't really what I asked for but – thank you," Isabella speaks, still staring straight ahead.

"I know," Vidcund answers, crossing his arms as he stares forward as well, "- But I couldn't say what you really wanted out loud," he confides, "It would've been all over the press. And trust me, if the press got a hold of this story, they would run with it."

Isabella nods, understanding exactly what he is saying. "Yeah…" she states, a hint of sadness lingering in her tone.

"But hey, I'll give it to you someday," Vidcund promises Isabella, playfully nudging her in the side to cheer her up, "Just be patient," he tells her. "Oh, and you don't have to pay for any of the wedding. I owe you like ten thousand simoleons based on what Pascal ate alone so – you won't have to pay for anything for a while."

"Vid-" Isabella starts to protest, but Vidcund firmly shakes his head, waving away the very thought.

"No, I insist," he asserts.

Isabella steps back and closes her mouth, shocked by how much Vidcund's backbone has appeared to grow. "Oh. Thanks," she states, smiling as she finds herself surprisingly pleased by this newfound discovery.

Pascal walks over and stops in front of them, carrying Amelia in his arms, as the other sims that are staying in their house follow behind him. "And now we can go home and get back to our normal boring lives…" Pascal trails off, before throwing his free hand up enthusiastically in celebration. "YES!" he cheers.

 _Fifteen Minutes Later – At the Curious Residence_

The Curious brothers walk through the front door of their new, replicated house, leading their guests into the main hallway. "Okay," Pascal says, leading the way as he turns to the others, still holding on to his daughter, "The bathroom's over there," he points out, "And to answer the question that at least half of you are thinking – yes, there's wifi. And no, I don't know the password."

"I thought it was 'Loki is an ass'?" Lazlo asks, watching as Kea attempts to connect to the wifi on her cell phone.

She shakes her head, "Nope. That's not it."

"Okay, then change 'ass' to 'asshole,'" Pascal tells her, gesturing down at the floor.

Kea smiles, moving her head back a bit in reaction as she hits 'enter' on her phone, "Yep! Got in!" she chimes.

"Sweet," Pascal replies, walking towards the kitchen, "I guess I did know the password after all!" Pascal declares, kneeling in front of the refrigerator. He opens the door and breathes in the familiar scent of their food. "Ah! It's good to be back!" he states, eyeing one of the containers that is on the refrigerator door. He grabs the strawberry yogurt and scans over the expiration date. "Aww man! The yogurt expired!" he stands up in place and shakes his fist in the air. "CURSE YOU, LOKI BEAKER!"

Nearby, Vidcund and Lazlo exchange strange looks with one another.

"Well, I guess it's as good as time as any to check our messages," Lazlo says, walking over to their beige answering machine that is mounted against the wall. He presses the large oval button that is on the top of it.

"You have twenty-five new messages," the automated voice rings as all of their friends gather up behind Vidcund and Lazlo, intrigued. "Message one-" the voice states calmly.

"VIDCUND, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!" Circe's voice blares from the machine, "I HAVE BEEN STANDING OUTSIDE FOR TWENTY MINUTES AND I AM VERY HOR-"

Vidcund quickly presses '9,' erasing the message. "Uh, just erase all of those," he tells him as Lazlo nods and begins flipping through the call history. Pascal walks up behind him, scanning the calls over.

"Geez, do we have any messages that aren't from Circe?" he asks as Lazlo continues to look through the calls. "Hey! Here's one!" Pascal notices, pressing message number sixteen.

"Pascal, it's Mortimer," the Pleasantview veteran speaks through the phone, "I just called to tell you to quit leaving your pottery magazines on our lawn," he says, "-And I know it's you because you're the only person who-" Pascal presses '9', quickly erasing the message.

Pascal leans up against the wall, giving a nervous laugh. "Uh, ignore that last one," he states, before walking back into the kitchen; his brothers follow him.

"So, whatever happened with the whole cult thing? I mean, are you still the leader?" Vidcund asks, placing his hands on the white counter top as Pascal places Amelia in her high chair.

"Yeah, but we had to shut it down," Pascal says, turning towards his brother, "There's too much pressure nowadays to conform to society's standards," he explains further, "-Also, I ate the charter," he states. Vidcund gives Pascal a puzzled look as his older brother crosses his arms in front of his body, defensive. "I got bored!" he chimes as the others walk into the kitchen and join them.

Isabella stands up next to Pascal. "But weren't they mad when they found out that you guys were the Curious brothers?" she wonders, leaning down on the counter top as well.

"They were mad at first, but at the end of the day, they're just sims - like you and me," Pascal explains, "And deep down they were just happy to have people who listened to them," he says knowingly, "I even made some friends!" Pascal exclaims, taking out a picture of him smiling with some of the cult members – his arms around them as Lazlo stands awkwardly in the background. Pascal sighs and shakes his head, smiling as he reminisces on that very day. "Yeah, that's a good-looking group!" He tapes the photo up on the kitchen photo wall.

"Wow, you turned Loki's own cult against him. I gotta say, Pascal, I'm impressed," Vidcund wanders over to him, "That takes skill."

"And…?" Pascal trails off, waiting for an add-on.

Vidcund smirks, letting out a nose breath as he rolls his eyes. "And you were right; your plan worked."

"Thank you!" Pascal says, holding his finger up in point. Pascal watches as Vidcund nods and moves into the living room.

"Well, I should probably get those hot dogs out of the hot tub," Vidcund explains as he backs towards the roof. Lazlo watches as Vidcund races up the stairs, his youngest brother shaking his head in thought.

"Well that's odd," Lazlo says, still gazing out the window.

Pascal moves up next to him, "What's odd?" he asks.

"Nothing. It's just after defeating Beaker and becoming the mayor again all in one day, I really thought Vidcund would be more excited that he got the city back."

Pascal places a hand on Lazlo's shoulder, silencing him for a moment. "…Wait for it!" Pascal says, as everyone stops what they are doing to listen.

"YEAH! WHOOO-HOOOOO! I AM AWESOME!" Vidcund's voice echoes from the rooftop. Lazlo looks to Pascal and smiles.


	15. Chapter 15: That's Where It Is

I can't believe this is the last chapter of the story. I actually wrote the last scene of _Welcome to Slavestown_ while I was still writing _Sim State University Versus Ripp Grunt_. The last scene of this story is the reason why the whole series took a different direction post _Trial & Errors_, and I really like how the new version turned out. :)

I would like to give a special thank you to my readers from Portugal and Indonesia, who never seemed to miss a chapter. You guys are amazing! I'd also like to thank everyone who took the time to read this story. It really means a lot! Without further ado, here is the final chapter of _Welcome to Slavestown_!

* * *

 **Welcome to Slavestown**

 _Chapter Fifteen_

Later that night, a massive celebration party is in full bloom at the Curious residence as almost everyone in the neighborhood came over to celebrate the return of the city of Strangetown. Music is blaring through the place as hundreds of sims are gathered both inside and out of the rather small residence. Outside, Kea is doing what she does at every party, eating half of the buffet table, as Tank and Isabella get drinks behind her. "Hey Kea-" Isabella calls out from behind the drinks table. "Do you want anything?" she asks.

"Can't talk now…eating!" Kea narrates, shoving a few more mozzarella sticks into her mouth.

Tank turns to Isabella, still watching Kea from the corner of his eye. "That baby is going to be fifteen pounds."

"But you'll still love it, right?" Isabella wonders.

"Of course," Tank assures her, taking a sip of his drink.

"You know, we were in college for four years, and this is the closest we've ever come to going to an actual college party," Ripp comments, appearing beside them. "Isn't that crazy?" he asks, "The only thing in college that even came close to a party were those lame dances!" he shouts over the music.

Isabella nods, feeling herself blush a bit as the memories of her last college dance flow into her mind. "Uh, I have to go to the bathroom," she states, excusing herself from the snack area.

 _Meanwhile: Inside the House_

Vidcund is standing in the kitchen, conversing with one of the many sims who was resurrected earlier that day. "Hey Vid! Bro hug!" Pascal says as he and Lazlo hug him on both sides.

Vidcund tenses up a bit. "Uh, what are you doing?" he asks, barely able to move.

"We're so happy that you're not dead, so we wanted to get a picture!" Pascal explains, holding up his camera in front of the three of them. He takes a photo.

Pascal quickly turns the camera around and gazes at the photo, beaming when he notices that Vidcund is actually smiling in it with them for the first time. "Yes!" Pascal cheers, pumping his fist in celebration, "And it only took twenty-five years!"

Pascal smiles as he continues to scroll through the photos on his camera, stopping when he comes across the photo that he took of the mural painted on one of the communal buildings in downtown Strangetown. "Hey Vid, check out what Lazlo and I saw downtown before we joined the cult!" he says, turning his camera around to show his brother.

Vidcund takes his glasses off and looks at the picture, examining it more closely. "Whoa! That's incredible! The detailing on that painting is so articulate, it's insane!" he comments.

"You really like it?" Jenny says, coming up behind her brothers. "It took me three weeks," she reveals.

Vidcund turns around, his face filled with shock at his sister's confession. "That was you?!" he awes, "But I thought you said the war was childish and stupid?" he recalls.

"I did," Jenny confirms, "But just because I thought your fight was petty, doesn't mean that I wasn't going to help you out. Plus, you know I like painting," she beams.

Vidcund smiles, "Thanks Jenny."

Nearby, Pascal has wandered off and is having a conversation with Isabella in the hallway. They are conversing about cheese, when Pascal walks forward and throws his arms around her, catching the young woman by surprise.

"Thank you," Pascal whispers as Isabella shifts a bit in his arms, struggling to maintain her composure.

"For what?" she asks, as the pair let go of each other.

Pascal smiles. "For saving my brother earlier," Pascal clarifies, "I'm not a very emotionally-attached sim, but honestly, I don't think I could live without Vidcund," the scientist confesses before lowering his voice once more, cupping his mouth partially with his hand. "Of course, I would never tell him that," he playfully continues, "It might get to his head," he states as Isabella gives a small laugh.

"So, what was it like dying?" Pascal asks as his youngest brother approaches them from behind; Lazlo immediately joining in on this conversation due to his rather large interest in the supernatural.

"It was surprisingly soothing," Isabella explains, "Although getting electrocuted is definitely not something I would like to experience again. Sometimes when I close my eyes, I still hear that cracking sound."

"Hey Izzy!" Kea greets, walking over with Kitty on her heels, "I'd like you to meet someone. This is Kitty," she introduces to her best friend as she wraps her arm around the gray-haired woman, "She and I have the exact same interests, isn't that funny? And I can't even tell what she's talking about half the time!"

"Uh, hello," Isabella shyly greets.

"Who wants mini hot dogs?" Kitty cheerfully asks, taking a silver tray out from behind her back and enthusiastically presenting it to the four of them.

"Ooh! Ooh! I do!" Kea choruses, taking and bunch of hot dogs and devouring them on the spot.

Next to her, Pascal is looking sick. "Please tell me those aren't the hot dogs that Vidcund threw out this afternoon," he says as Kitty holds up the tray to him. Pascal shakes his head, waving the food away. "Uh, no thanks, Mom."

"Mom?" Brent repeats, passing by them in the hallway, "That makes so much sense," he states, shaking his head as he walks into the other room.

"Hey Mom, where's Dad?" Lazlo asks.

Kitty shrugs, "I don't know, probably arguing with that cleaning lady. You know she wanted to clean both the upstairs _and_ the downstairs?" she tells them, shaking her head at this atrocity, "I don't know what her problem is!"

"Hi Mom," Vidcund greets, stepping in next to her and casually looking down at the silver tray, "What are you doing with the hot dogs I threw out today?" he completes.

"Viddy!" Kitty chimes, gazing at his classic brown coat, yellow shirt, and white pants outfit, "You dress older than me."

"Ha! I told you!" Pascal speaks up, sticking his finger in Vidcund's face. "Now you can't complain every time I joke that you don't dress your age."

"Oh, I can complain," Vidcund retorts, slowly taking the tray from his mother. "Hey Mom, do you want to talk to Margaret? I'm pretty sure she's upstairs looking for you."

Kitty's face lights up. "Oh, of course! I should do that right now!" she says, walking towards the stairs and giving everyone a wave goodbye, "Goodbye kids! Goodbye blonde girl I wish was my kid! Goodbye other girl whose name I can't remember!" she shouts.

"So, you guys met our mother," Vidcund comments, starting the conversation up again, "Yeah, she's really interesting."

"Yeah," Pascal agrees, "Except she kinda went crazy after she gave birth to Lazlo, which is kinda funny because he's the most normal one of all of us," Pascal continues, "which, if you think about it, is really sad," he completes, shaking his head in pity. Next to him, both of his brothers are glaring at him. "What?" Pascal states.

Vidcund sighs, "Well, I'm going to go and change my clothes because apparently I don't 'look acceptable' to some people's standards," he says, mockingly making air quotes.

"Well, I think you look great," Lazlo tells him, "Right Izzy? Doesn't Vid look great?" he asks.

Isabella eyes widen as she struggles to find the right words to say, all four of her friends awaiting her answer. "Uh, well-" she begins, quickly turning around and taking off into the living room, a soft blush forming on her face. Kea follows her.

"Gee, way to scare her off," Pascal adds, turning to Lazlo.

Kea speeds up, finding herself having to run after Isabella to catch up with her. "Hey, you know what I've been thinking about all day?" she asks, once she has successfully cornered Isabella in the closet-sized chess room.

"No, what?" Isabella asks, the blush slowly disappearing from her face.

"I keep thinking about how accurate that fortune teller was," Kea awes to her friend, "I mean, didn't you tell me that almost all of her predictions came true?" she asks, quickly adding, "You know, after it was over."

Isabella nods, thinking this through. "I guess," she answers, "I mean, she was right about the war and one of us dying. But she mentioned something about staying away from a balcony, which never happened. And she said that there would be new love in the future – at least, that's what I think she meant – and all of us are already attached," she says with a sigh, seemingly disappointed by this news.

"Well, I don't know what to tell you about that one," Kea states, taking a sip of water, "But hey! A 50-50 success rate is pretty impressive for a fortune teller!" Kea clarifies, glancing out the window. "Oh my gosh!" Kea cries as she drops everything and races on to the front lawn. An intrigued and somewhat worried Isabella runs up behind her.

"Look! I found Bella Goth!" Kea announces, grabbing the Strangetown townie look-a-like by the hand and showing her to Isabella.

Isabella nervously smiles before turning to the Bella Goth townie. "Sorry about that," she apologizes as Kea lets her go.

"Okay guys, don't look now," Tank warns, walking up to Kea and Isabella, "But there are some strange weirdos over there," he says as Ripp walks up to join them.

"Yeah," he seconds, shifting his voice into a whisper, "There's some Pleasantview people. Quick, here they come! Don't look at them!" he exclaims as Isabella, Tank, Kea, and himself all look off in various random directions as they walk by, purposely ignoring them.

"Ah…Pleasantview," Kea speaks up, turning towards her friends, "That was some five days. Too bad I'm not allowed to go back there anymore."

Isabella tilts her head in confusion. "Why? What'd you do?" she wonders.

Kea sighs and starts anxiously playing with her hands. "Let's just say there was some…un _pleasant_ ness the last time I paid them a visit…" she reminisces, trailing off a bit, "You remember reading about all the scandals that have broken out in the city in that magazine that Ripp subscribes to?" she asks.

"Life in Pleasantview?" Ripp assesses, repeating the title. "Yes…?" he answers.

"Well, I kind of caused all of them," Kea confesses, "But I'll have you know that most of them were accidental," she explains further, "And that's why I can never go back," she retells her friends, "Which is a shame because I still have John Burb's coat," she says, taking it out from seemingly nowhere and pushing her nose into it, taking a long, deep exhale. "Ah…" she remembers, "Good times." Kea hugs the jacket as all three of her friends stare at her, concerned and weirded out at the same time.

"Well…that's something," Ripp speaks into the growing silence.

Next to him, Isabella turns to Tank. "Hey, can I talk to you about something?" she asks him.

Tank nods, "Sure, where at?" he asks, Ripp looking puzzled behind him.

"Just…come here," Isabella says, grabbing Tank by the arm and leading him over to the side of the house next to the outside stairs. "Hey, I didn't want to mention anything about this in front of Ripp, so I'm going to just tell you-" she begins.

"-You're dating Vid," Tank completes her sentence, "I knew it! I'm sorry, but I totally called it!"

"What? No!" Isabella corrects him, frantically shaking both her head and her hands. "No," she repeats a little more firmly, trying to keep a blush from forming on her face. "Okay, so, the thing is, when I died, I went to the afterlife, and I talked to your mom," she finishes, finally getting back on topic.

"You did?" Tank replies, sounding rather excited, "What did she say?"

"She said that she watches you two a lot," Isabella articulates, "-Which is normal there, trust me," she adds, addressing the strange look that is on Tank's face, "And she also said that she's really proud of the person that you've become."

Tank scrunches his eyebrow, amazed by this news. "She did?' he repeats, unsure of what to say due to all of the newfound happiness that is rushing through his body, "Wow! That's incredible!" he awes. "Was she happy?"

"Oh yeah," Isabella quickly answers, "She is very happy there," she tells him, as Tank leans forward and gives her a hug.

 _Meanwhile: Back inside the House_

Pascal and Lazlo are sitting on the bar stools in the kitchen when Crystal Vu walks through the front door. She waves to them as she takes off her coat and throws it on the pile next to the bookcase. "Hey Crystal, you made it!" Pascal greets as she readjusts the hem of her shirt.

"Yeah, sorry I'm late. I've been planning how to get rid of the wall outside the city," she tells them, sitting down next to Lazlo, "You know Loki actually etched his name on every single brick? Sometimes I can't believe that guy," she states as Pascal runs off to answer a crying Amelia.

"-He left," Lazlo comments as he makes eye contact with Crystal. In no time at all, the pair is making out with each other.

"Hey Crystal, can we talk to you?" Lola asks, as the Singles, minus Erin, walk over to the stool where the couple is situated.

Crystal looks up at them, still holding on to Lazlo. "Really? _Now?_ " she complains, obviously irritated. She looks up and sighs, noting the pleading expressions that are on their faces. "Alright, fine," she says, getting up and walking into the living room.

"Look Crystal, we just wanted to apologize for the way we acted during the war," Chloe begins, rubbing her arm, "If we weren't going to join you, then we at least should've been more supportive."

"Yeah," Lola speaks up, standing next to her twin sister, "Especially since we later found out that Kristen was hiding Amar in her bedroom," she adds. The twins look back and stare at Kristen, who casually shrugs her shoulders.

"Hey, I heard that's what you're supposed to do with stowaways," Kristen replies, noticing the puzzled look on Crystal's face. "Amar is my boyfriend," she clarifies.

"Oh," Crystal responds, "Well anyway, I appreciate the apology," she sincerely tells them, "It does mean a lot," she adds, shuffling her feet a bit to change the subject. "So…uh, are we still going to Veronaville?" she wonders.

Lola nods, "As soon as Erin gets back from her spiritual journey," she explains.

"And when will that be?" Crystal asks, tilting her head to the side.

Lola shrugs, "I have no idea," she answers, "She left five months ago with a giant ceramic crystal ball, and she never came back."

"Yeah, that's Erin for you," Crystal responds, shaking her head.

 _Meanwhile: In Pascal's Room_

Pascal is running around the room looking for Amelia's stuffed animal. "Damn it! Where did Lazlo put that thing?" Pascal questions, Amelia crying behind him until she suddenly stops. Pascal turns around, only to find Nervous bouncing her up and down.

"Hey, you weirdo! Get away from my kid!" Pascal jokingly states, smiling.

Nervous laughs. "Well, you got me there," he states, handing Amelia over to Pascal. "You know, to tell you the truth, I am kind of sad that I didn't get to see the birth of your baby."

"Man, that was a mess!" Pascal exclaims, his thoughts racing back to that day, "There was so much blood that Vidcund almost wrecked his pants," he tells Nervous, laughing. "So, how have you been? I haven't talked to you in a while," Pascal states, "I would've called or texted or something but we were – you know, forced to go under the radar cause of Loki," he explains.

Nervous smiles, "Well, I've been pretty good. After I got kicked out of their house, I joined the police force, and I focused all of my time and energy on work," he answers, "which of course, did wonders for my love life."

Pascal nods, "Yeah, I've been there, man. Currently there, and believe it or not I am actually enjoying it," he says, "I think all those years of watching Vidcund's train-wreck with Circe made me realize that there are more important things in life – like pop tarts, and my daughter, and you know, all the rest," Pascal completes, waving his hand in a circle, "So, no more dating scene for me."

"Really?" Nervous speaks up, "Cause I was thinking about going back on the dating scene, and I think you should, too," Nervous confesses, taking a step towards his friend. Nervous leans towards Pascal, lowering his voice to a whisper, "After all, we wouldn't want all of those potential suitors to miss out on someone great," he states, blushing slightly.

Pascal tilts his forehead, clearly confused by this whole situation. "Oh, uh, thanks," he states.

Outside of Pascal's room, Ripp and Tank are standing near the drinks table, watching as their younger brother tries to chug from a giant pineapple. Tank nudges Ripp in the side, "Remind me not to drink from that," he murmurs; Ripp nods, crushing the red cup that is in his hands.

"Well, I'm going to find where Izzy is," Ripp tells his brothers, "I think tonight might be our night," he tells Tank, sighing lovingly as he looks up at the stars.

"Uh, Ripp?" Tank speaks up, "I'd hate to burst your bubble, but I don't think Isabella is your girl anymore."

Ripp turns around and faces his brother, clearly bewildered, "Why would you say that?" he asks.

"Because – er," Tank begins, nervously rubbing the back of his head as he tries to find the best way to break this to his brother, "Why don't you just talk to her?" he says finally. Tank exits into the house, leaving a confused Ripp behind.

Ripp turns towards the back window and looks into the house, a bad feeling forming in his stomach. Ripp sighs, knowing that only one thing could relieve his troubles. "Izzy!" calls out, "Isabella!" he repeats, stepping into the Curious residence.

Upstairs, Isabella is leaning up against the white railing that is aligning the roof, gazing out at the stars, though based on the perplexed expression that is on her face as she rests her head up with her right fist, it is safe to say that her mind is wandering elsewhere.

"You know young child, I knew this would happen," an elderly woman's voice rings behind her. Margaret Collins paces over to Isabella, standing between the graduate and one of the telescopes. "It was written in the stars!" Margaret announces, her eyes sparkling as she says this.

Intrigued, Isabella turns to the Gypsy Matchmaker. "What do you mean?" she wonders.

"Many years ago, the stars foretold of a woman who would rebuild the temple that was broken," Margaret says, gesturing her hands up to the sky.

"But I didn't singlehandedly rebuild the city," Isabella tells her, the young graduate's face striken with confusion, "it was a team effort!"

Margaret gazes forward, shaking her face lightly at Isabella's confused state, "My dear, you are thinking too literally," she says, "Perhaps the temple is not something, but rather, some _one,_ " she reveals, these words striking Isabella hard as she turns to face the Gypsy Matchmaker. "Isabella," Margaret continues, seemingly speaking to the young girl's soul, "You have rebuilt many temples in your life. But soon, you must learn to rebuild your own," Margaret reveals, still staring out at the sky, "Only then will you be truly satisfied."

Isabella turns away as the elderly woman departs from her, leaving her alone with her thoughts. The young woman sighs as she begins to ponder everything that has happened that day. She groans as she lifts her hands up to her face, her head starting to hurt. Isabella quickly swerves around, almost knocking into someone in the process. "Izzy!" Ripp beams, instantly wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into a hug, catching her by surprise, "I'm so glad you're okay," he states, pushing her closer into his frame, "Do you forgive me?" he asks.

"Yeah, sure," Isabella's voice muffles, her face squished up against his chest as she attempts to move herself slightly away from him, "For what?"

"You know," Ripp replies, gazing down at her, "For breaking up with you last week," he clarifies, smiling as he shakes his head, "I gotta tell you, that was the worst week of my life. But now it's all better, because you and I can get back together again!" Ripp beams, "Just like it was meant to be!" he choruses.

Isabella nods, her stomach sinking slightly at this news. "Uh, yeah," Isabella says, wondering why the words that she has waited to hear for so long aren't making her feel ecstatic.

"Come here!" Ripp states, pulling her into a kiss. Isabella freezes in place; something doesn't feel right. For the first time in five years, Isabella eXtreme isn't kissing back. The butterflies in her stomach are silenced.

Ripp smiles as he pulls away from his girlfriend, holding her at arms length. "Uh, I have to go," Isabella says, racing down the stairs and into the living room. She rushes into the bathroom, closing the door behind her as she plops down in front of it, covering her face with her hands.

She breaths in and out, trying to control her emotions. "I just don't understand it," Isabella speaks into the empty room, "If this was everything I wanted, then why do I feel so sick?" she says, laying herself down on the tile.

A few minutes later, Isabella exits the bathroom. She rounds the corner and stops, finding Pascal, Vidcund, and Lazlo conversing with each other in the hallway. Isabella pulls back a bit. For some reason she doesn't want them to see her.

"I don't know guys, the whole thing was weird," Vidcund says a few feet in front of her, his back turned. "But when Circe was kissing me all those times today, I didn't feel anything."

"I understand," Pascal speaks up, giving a nod, "I get that same feeling every time La Fiesta Tech gives me another grant," he explains, looking up at his brother, "Face it Vid, you've outgrown her," Pascal replies, smiling at this realization.

Vidcund steps back, somewhat surprised by this news. "Huh," he expresses. Isabella slowly moves away from them, Pascal's words soaking into her brain, hitting her hard.

" _Huh indeed,_ " she says to herself, moving further into the living room.

"What's wrong, Vid?" Pascal speaks up, continuing their conversation, "You seem disappointed."

"It's not that," Vidcund states, moving in closer to his brothers and lowering his voice a tad, "It's just, you know, after everything that happened between me and Circe, I kinda wonder if I'm ever going to experience that feeling again," he wonders.

"Who knows?" Pascal shrugs, "I would say that life works in mysterious ways, but as man of science, you know I don't believe in that nonsense," he states, gazing down at the ground. Pascal looks up for a moment, noticing something rather off about his brother's appearance. "You're still wearing that?" Pascal asks Vidcund, pointing down to Isabella's torn off sleeves that are still wrapped around Vidcund's waist.

Vidcund looks down at them, picking up the fabric between his fingers. "Huh, I guess so," he states, still looking down at it.

Pascal crosses his arms, a knowing stare spreading across his face. "Geez, you got it bad for her," he remarks as Vidcund's eyes trail to the floor, slightly embarrassed. "Look Vid, it's okay if you like her. You can tell us, we already know."

Lazlo nods, "Yeah, we've known for a while," he adds, hanging on to his drink, "You were always following her around and talking ten times more than usual," he notes, glancing down at his brother, "Not to mention the fact that you did _everything_ she told you to do," he annunciates.

Vidcund sighs, still fiddling with the piece of material, a mix of both tension and anxiety running through his stomach. "Alright…so I like her," Vidcund confesses, barely looking at them, "What do I do now?" he asks.

"Well, you gotta tell her," Pascal responds, taking a sip of his drink.

Vidcund scrunches his eyebrows, "Do you really think it's a good idea to tell her when we're living in the same house?" he wonders.

"What? So you guys are just supposed to awkwardly hit on each other until someone finally cracks and torches the house?" Pascal questions, noticing the bizarre and slightly weirded out looks that have appeared on his brother's faces, "-What? Too much?" he adds.

Lazlo shakes his head, hoping to erase the thought. "But seriously Vid, you gotta tell her," he states, redirecting the topic, "I mean, what's the harm? She obviously likes you."

"Really?" Vidcund says, his voice filled with doubt, "And what is the basis for your argument?" he asks.

"Oh, I don't know," Lazlo responds matter-of-factly, "Maybe because she saved your life? Also, didn't you guys almost kiss like twice?" he recalls.

"Yeah, but she was going through the break-up then, so she could've been rebounding," Vidcund tells him.

Pascal nods, "That's true. It could be like that time Sheryl broke up with me, and I almost kissed that cactus," he reminisces, noticing Vidcund's glare, "Hey, you like plants. You shouldn't be insulted!" Pascal crosses his arms.

Lazlo's face softens. "But in all seriousness Vid, you gotta tell her how you feel. Because trust me, in this neighborhood, if you don't, someone else will. And as one of the few somewhat normal girls in Strangetown, she's not going to be on the market for long." Pascal nods in agreement.

Vidcund sighs, nervousness filling his body. Pascal walks over, placing a gentle hand on his little brother's shoulder. "Listen Vid, I know you're scared, but all we're saying is, don't be afraid to risk something great to go after the one thing that makes you feel alive."

"Yeah, okay, thanks," Vidcund stutters, his arms shaking a bit as he backs away from them, "I think I'm going to get some fresh air," he announces as his body fills with panic. Pascal and Lazlo watch as Vidcund races up the stairs and on to the roof, passing by Kea who is coming out of the bathroom.

"I guess that was a lot for him to take in," Lazlo comments, hoping to relieve the awkwardness of the situation. Pascal nods uneasily next to him, clearly worried.

 _A Few Minutes Later – On the Roof of the Curious Residence_

Vidcund is leaning over the closed off balcony, breathing in and out, attempting to calm himself down. After a few moments, he sighs as his shaking diminishes, the coldness of the air surprisingly soothing him as he stands alone looking out at the stars. _"They don't know what they're talking about! She would never go for me,"_ Vidcund's mind wanders, _"She's clearly out of my-"_

"Hey! There you are!" Isabella's sweet voice chimes behind him, "I've been looking all over for you," she says, sounding surprisingly cheery.

"You have?" Vidcund states, somewhat surprised as he sits up from the banister. He turns towards her, his panic vanishing when he sees her smiling face.

"Yeah," Isabella says, moving up closer, "I feel like we haven't really gotten a chance to talk since, you know," she begins, giving a small smile.

Vidcund nods, knowing what she is getting at. "Oh…yeah," he remembers, as he looks down at the ground. "Hey, are you mad at me?" he speaks suddenly, causing Isabella to tilt her head, confused.

"Why would I be mad at you?" she asks, clearly puzzled.

Vidcund continues to gaze at the floor, letting out a deep sigh, "Because, I let Circe go and-" Isabella quickly moves forward, placing her hand on his arm before he can continue, seeing the anguish that is forming on his face.

"No," she states warmly, "Of course not."

"Oh," Vidcund replies, the silence growing around them as neither one of them knows what to say to each other. "Hey Izzy, I just realized-" he speaks up, "- I never got to thank you for saving me," he says, feeling the intensity growing around them as he pauses to look at her. "So…thanks," he states.

Isabella smiles as she leans up against the banister next to him, placing her hand gently on top of his. "You're welcome," she says.

Vidcund turns back towards the banister, the pair standing in silence for a bit as they gaze out at the night sky.

"I don't get it," Vidcund says suddenly, "You knew it was either me or you. So why did you save me?" he asks, feeling as though the question is burning in his very soul.

Isabella looks out at the sand, seriousness filling her eyes. "Because…these people need you, Vidcund," she answers. Isabella looks up at the stars and sighs, before continuing on with her explanation as Vidcund stares at her intently, listening to her every word, "When we were out there fighting, I realized something: Strangetown could survive without me, but it couldn't survive without you," Isabella confesses, "Think about it: This whole thing started as a result of you leaving, the city went into total chaos without you!" Isabella exclaims, a smile on her face. "Now think about what would've happened if you never came back, if you were really gone for good," she states, "You may not realize it, Vid, but this city needs you a whole lot more than you ever needed it. And that's why I had to step in front of you," Isabella explains, her eyes shining as she turns towards him, "Because if I didn't, there would be no Strangetown."

Isabella turns back towards the stars once more and gives a happy breath, before turning back to Vidcund who is now staring out into the distance, soaking in all that she has said; his face unreadable. Next to him, Isabella beams, "But of course I would be lying if I said that was the only reason why I saved you," she confesses, rubbing the back of her head a bit in nervousness, "I also saved you cause – well, I care about you, Vidcund. You're my friend," she says, feeling rather cheery about this news.

After a few moments of continuous silence from Vidcund, Isabella leans up from the banister and stands straight. "Well, I should probably be getting back to the party-" she begins, slowly walking backwards towards the stairs, completely unaware that Kea has just walked up the stairs behind her.

"Isabella, wait!" Vidcund sits up, her sudden departure lighting a spark inside him.

She turns back, "Yeah?" she states.

Isabella watches as Vidcund walks towards her, the tension around them only rising. Vidcund holds his hand out. Intrigued, Isabella moves forward, gently taking it as he twirls her around into a hug. Isabella sighs at the warmth of his body, finding the sound of his heartbeat quite comforting. Isabella looks delicately up at him, noticing that his heart is racing. "Oh," she awes, feeling the butterflies return to her stomach.

Vidcund looks down at Isabella, passion forming in his eyes. "You may think that Strangetown doesn't need you, but I do."

Isabella locks eyes with him, shocked, as she lets out a short breath. "Vid-" she begins.

All of a sudden, Vidcund leans forward and kisses her. Isabella tenses up a bit, clearly shocked, before wrapping her arms around him and passionately melting into the kiss, letting herself go. Isabella looks up as the pair pulls away, a deep blush apparent on her face as she feels her head starts to rush. "Uh…?"

They slowly separate, good feelings washing over them as their stomachs fill up with butterflies. Vidcund and Isabella quickly lean up against the banister, both smiling to themselves as they hear someone coming up the stairs. Pascal walks up and leans on the banister between them. "Phew! That party just keeps going!" he states, "So, what's up with you two?" he asks.

Vidcund and Isabella gaze at each other briefly, before looking back down at the ground, both of them unable to say a word, their faces flushed. Isabella grips the side of the white banister, a sudden realization hitting her square in the chest: _I'm on a balcony._

But at that moment, she doesn't care.

 _To Be Continued._

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Whoo! _Welcome to Slavestown_ is complete! Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, alerted, or favorited this story over the years! There are two more stories left in the Strangetown Saga after this one, but I am taking a short break from this series, so I am unsure when the fourth story will be coming out. (Currently, the planning sheet for it is three hundred pages, so it's definitely going to give Sim State a run for its money in length!) Feel free to leave a review telling me what you thought about _Welcome to Slavestown_. I would really appreciate it!

~ SClownzZzZz


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